


It's Just Lunch

by TG81



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hollywood, Charlie dies, Cliche's Abound, EVERYONE'S HUMAN, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:41:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 28
Words: 149,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26346514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TG81/pseuds/TG81
Summary: He's a cocky man-whoring movie star. She's a media heiress engaged to another man. When Bella is in town finalizing her wedding plans she meets one of the men on her "Top 5." Rated M for a reason, very OOC.
Relationships: Alice Cullen/Jasper Hale, Edward Cullen/Bella Swan, Edward Masen/Bella Swan
Comments: 27
Kudos: 9





	1. The Discussion

**Author's Note:**

> This is fully posted over at ff.net.  
> Please be patient as I upload chapters, I'm still learning the AO3 platform.
> 
> It's Just Lunch
> 
> AN: So I apparently have an issue with starting stories. I can't help it! I get these scenes in my mind and in a couple days I develop them into stories, and I just have to get them down on "paper". So this is my newest one. I have not given up on Rounding Third, in fact I'm working on a banner for it, so hopefully I'll have one soon.
> 
> So here is my newest baby! I don't have a lot of it written out yet, but my outline indicates this will be about 25 chapters. I hope you all like it!
> 
> Disclaimers: I have two dogs that shed too damn much, a Twilight DVD and distaste for all things broccoli. The rest is all SM.

Bella Swan

"So tell me babe, who would be your top five?" I asked shutting off the TV.

"Rosalie Hale, Irina Merriman, Tanya Denali, Kate Garrett, and Carmen Garcia," he said, looking pretty smug.

"Really, Em? All blondes?" I teased. "Are you sure you want to be with me? You didn't seem to hesitate on that either."

"You asked my top five list and I gave them to you. It's your turn by the way," Emmett said.

"Okay, fine. Edward Masen, Tyler Crowley, Alec Connors, Eleazar Santos and Jacob Black," I replied.

"I knew you would say Masen! You've been obsessed with him ever since I can remember," he laughed.

"So? It's not like I'm ever going run into anyone on my list. Are you jealous?" I teased.

"Nah, I know you're mine Bells, an in two more months you are going to be mine forever," he rubbed his hands together like a villain. "Honey, if you run into Edward Masen, you have my permission." He kissed the top of my head as I snuggled into his chest.

"So when I go to LA for my fitting, and I run into Edward Masen, and he decides he wants to fuck me senseless, I can?" I asked with mock horror.

"Absolutely. Maybe I should come with you and see if I can stalk Rosalie Hale?"

"Now you're just being silly," I laughed and slapped his chest. "You know I'll hold you to that."

"Just don't get caught in the tabloids. The last thing I need is mother trying to give me an 'out'" He warned, trying to keep a straight face using his air quotes. "I really am sorry about all the shit she's put you through, babe. You know I love you, right? I still can't believe she forced you to sign those damn papers."

I placed my fingers over his lips, "Shih…just stop. Just remember, Daddy had you sign those papers too. I love you more than anything and you're killing my buzz here, babe," I paused to yawn. "Besides, I'm leaving in the morning and I have to plot my ways to stalk Edward Masen."

"I'm going to miss you. Promise me you'll call when you land?"

"Of course, don't be daft. Now are we going to keep talking or are you going to give me something to make me want to come back home?" I could feel him hardening against my leg as I began to place light kisses along his broad chest muscles.

"Oh, I've got your memory right here," he said as he pulled my leg across his waist.

"Bella! We're here! What were you thinking about?" she paused, and then held up her hand, "Wait, I'm not sure I want to know."

I couldn't help but blush. Regardless of the fact I lost my virginity six years ago, just getting caught thinking about sex caused the blood to rush to my cheeks. "I can't help it if I'm marrying a sex God, Alice, don't be jealous. Besides I was thinking about the conversation Em and I had before bed last night."

Alice rolled her eyes, and looked down at her journal, "Anyways, I have our itinerary for while we are down here. You have your fitting first thing tomorrow, and mine is right after yours…HOLY SHIT! Is that ours?" she screeched.

"What are you talking about?" I quizzed. I looked out the window, and frowned. There was a limo, and a couple of the airport employees loading our luggage into the back of car.

"Bella, seriously? A freaking limo? God you are so lucky!"

"I'm going to kill him."

"What are you talking about?"

"I told him I wanted to just have a relaxing time away, not to worry about me. We were supposed to have a basic sedan for us to get around for the next few weeks." I started digging around my purse for my phone. I had no problem with being chauffeured; hell Renee probably had a town car bring me home from the hospital the day I was born. The problem I had was spending it on frivolous and unnecessary things.

"Bella let the man spoil you! You're getting married in two months and you might as well get used to his money now."

"I'm not with him for his money. I have my own you know."

"I know that silly, and I know he does too. He clearly loves you; why else would he do this for you?"

"He also said I could have an affair with Edward Masen."

She laughed, "Now you have to tell me how that came about."

I replayed our conversation for her from the night before, describing how watching an old episode of Friends led us to allow each other the freedom to have celebrity romps.

"We're getting off track. Tell me about our schedule again."

"Right. Well we have dress fittings in the morning, lunch with Uncle Aro, and then we are finalizing the flowers via video conference in the evening. Then we are having dinner at the Four Seasons."

"What are our plans for the rest of the day?" I asked.

"Since it's only nine am here, we still have a bit of time before lunch really gets going. It's going to be hard getting adjusted to LA time. I'm still stuck on New York time. Maybe we could do some shopping and relax today. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to take a lot out of us."

"We just flew for what seemed like the longest time, I really want to grab a shower, nap and then we can grab a bite? Plus I want to check out a bookstore or something here." She nodded, knowing my methods for decompression. Ever since our freshman year of college, she had always been able to read me and just know what I needed.

Alice and I met through my job. I was working in a boutique book store in the artsy district of New York City and she was employed as a personal assistant to Felix McCarty. Felix had just purchased an impressive living space, and turned one of the rooms into a library. The bookstore that I worked in specialized in rare book collections, and somehow the owner had his connections and he could get anything. Of course, you paid a hefty price for it.

The first time she came into the store she looked me up and down and wrinkled her nose, informing me that she was sure my shoes were comfortable, but ugly. She didn't say that in so many words, but the message was clear. She offered to take me shopping, but I politely declined. She told me she had a good feeling about me, and would be back. I remember staring at her and wondering who the hell she was.

The second time I saw Alice she had a very familiar looking handsome man with her. He had a heartwarming smile that instantly made me smile back. She introduced him as Emmett McCarty, her boss' nephew. She went about her business through the store, placed her order with me, and as they were getting ready to leave, I realized I had forgotten to get her contact information. She looked up at me, and gave me a sly smile and wrote down a phone number. If I knew then, what I know now, I would have never called the number she wrote down that day.

We settled into the limo and twenty minutes later we were still going over our schedules, my phone rang with the Monday Night Football theme song. I didn't need to look at the caller ID to know it was Emmett.

"Hey babe."

"Hey! How was your flight?"

"It was fine, we are just getting to the hotel now," I paused, hoping he would explain his reasoning.

"I wish I could say I was sorry, Bells. You know I just want the best for you."

"I know, but you are what is best for me. I would have been happy in our little rental."

"So I take it you aren't to the hotel yet?" he sounded nervous.

"No...What did you do?"

"Hmm, what? Me? I didn't do anything," I could hear the grin on his face.

"Just for that, I'm going to go seek out Edward Masen."

"Just remember to double bag it." I loved this about Emmett; we could joke around like this and not feel any sense of jealousy. He and I both knew that we were in love and only had eyes for each other.

"Oh look! There he is!" I yelled and rolled down the window. "Edward! Oh, Edward! Please come feel me up, Edward!" I called out the window. I could hear Emmett laughing at the other end and Alice was rolling her eyes, grinning at me. "Seriously babe, we're pulling up to the hotel, I've gotta go. Love you!"

"Love you too, bye." With his final sentiment and he hung up.

Edward Masen

I woke up with cotton mouth, again. I rolled over and pretended to still be asleep. I felt a coolness next to me, and opened my eyes, relieved that she was gone. I was thankful Lisa or Laura or Leslie whatever her name was had had left before I woke up. That always saved me the trouble of kicking them out later and making things awkward.

Groaning at the headache that was now paired with the dry feeling in my mouth, I forced myself to pull on some boxers and head downstairs.

"Hey bro! Welcome to the world of the living," Jasper said as he offered me a cup of coffee.

"Thanks," I replied as I held up the coffee in a mock toast.

"So who was the blonde piece of ass doing the walk of shame this morning?" he raised an eyebrow leaning against the kitchen counter.

"Hell if I know. I don't even remember taking her home, which reminds me, how did I get home?" I ran my fingers through my hair, standing against the island, trying to remember anything about the night before.

"I brought you and your girl home."

"Where the fuck is my car?"

"You're welcome by the way. It's still back at the club. Don't worry though we have to stop by Carlisle's for an early meeting at the Four Seasons, and we can pick it up on the way back." I nodded.

"Thanks for the coffee, and thanks for the ride last night. What time are we meeting Cullen?"

"We have to be there in an hour. So get your ass up and moving, Son! We've got some scripts for you to go over this afternoon. For some reason people think your skinny ass can act and they want to talk to you." I glared at my manager; he knew I hated it when he called me 'son'. I was just about to remind him of that, when his phone rang.

"I'm gonna take this, and put some fucking clothes on will you? We're leaving in thirty," and he walked out of the room to answer his call.

We pulled up to the Four Seasons ten minutes late. Carlisle was not going to be pleased. I didn't care though. I was nursing one of the worst hangovers I had had in a while and the only thing that sounded remotely appetizing was a McDonald's sausage, egg and cheese muffin.

We pulled up to the valet at the Four Seasons right behind a black limo, as we were getting out of the car I heard a sexy voice call out "Feel me up, Edward!" which was followed by laughter. Jasper looked at me and raised his eyebrows.

"I have no fucking clue dude! Don't even look at me like that." I put on my Rayban's and walked toward the entrance of the hotel. I glanced around hoping to see if I could tell who the sexy voice belonged to, but I didn't notice anyone in particular.

"Carlisle said he'd meet us by the pool." I nodded and headed in that direction.

"You guys are late!" Carlisle called.

"Sorry about that, Carl, Eddie here had a hankering for Mickey D's," Jasper apologized.

"Don't worry about it, I'll just take seventeen percent from your next picture instead of twelve," Carlisle smiled and laughed, but I had a feeling he wasn't joking. Carlisle Cullen was one of Hollywood's super agents. I didn't mind, I had enough money, and chances were Carlisle would end up earning it anyways.

"So why are we here, C?" I asked.

"We gotta talk about your future Eddie. How would you feel about doing commercials?" I snorted.

"Is this a joke? You dragged us from the Hills to ask if Edward would do fucking commercials, is this some kind of sick joke Cullen?" Jasper snapped. Carlisle and Jasper had been at odds over my career ever since we moved to LA. Jasper and I had been inseparable for the past twelve years. It was a natural reflex for him to jump to my defense, regardless if it was over my career or personal matters.

"Oh calm down. I was kidding. Masen, you need to tell your boy here that he's not on the farm anymore," Carlisle said facing me. He loved to make hillbilly and farm jokes at Jasper's expense. Jasper may have moved from Texas over twenty years ago, but he never lost his accent. He turned to Jasper, "Eddie is too big to do commercials. I do need to know if he's read anymore scripts. I have some people who are starting to call, and I can't put them off forever."

"That's fine; I was planning on reading a few today. I'll let you know if I come across anything interesting." my agent nodded. After appeasing Carlisle with my promise to read over a few scripts, we settled in and for a long while it was as if Jasper and Carlisle actually seemed to enjoy each other's company. Ever since we had moved out to LA the two of them were at odds. Jasper was on the lookout for projects that he knew would appeal to me personally, and Carlisle was constantly sending projects my way that would make a lot of money.

"So are we done here guys?" I asked, and I started to stand up. Jasper and Carlisle nodded and began to rise too. As I stood up, I realized my hangover was gone. I still felt like shit, but at least I didn't have the headache and the cotton mouth anymore. The fact that I didn't want to dry heave into the plants around the pool was a bonus too. I looked at my watch and realized we had been talking for over two hours. Not that I hate Carlisle or anything, in fact the man is a fucking genius funny as hell too, but spending two hours with him? Nah, I had better shit to do with my day.

I looked around as I put my sunglasses on and someone caught my eye. Jasper must have noticed her at the same time, and let out a low whistle.

"E, man. Check out the hottie in the corner over there," he was staring at the far end of the pool. There was a petite brunette bending over spreading out her towel across one of the deck chairs. She had long brown hair and in that bikini her legs could go on for days, her ass was round and from where I was standing, it was begging to be palmed, by me.

When she turned around, I was able to catch a full sight of her. She was stunning, a natural beauty. I could feel my breath catch in my throat; suddenly I couldn't remember how to breathe. She had curves in all the right places, but wasn't overweight by any means. She had full lips, but the rest of her face was hidden behind those ridiculous sunglasses that were all the trend. I thought they made chicks look like insects, but whatever.

"Hey, you good for a moment?" Jasper asked. I nodded, but before I could say anything, he was walking over to the opposite side towards the pool. I felt Carlisle step up to my side where Jasper was standing.

"If I wasn't married, I'd be all over that," Carlisle commented. Somehow I didn't doubt that, Carlisle had a reputation for a reason. "But I have Esme at home, speaking of which, I'm late. Tell Farmer John I said good luck, he could use a break from the sheep." He briefly shook my hand and left the hotel.

I turned my attentions back to Jasper and the beauty at the edge of the pool. He was no doubt using his southern charm and accent to its full capacity. She held out her hand to shake his, and instead of shaking it, he took her hand and placed a kiss on the back. Smooth mother fucker, I thought. What caught me by surprise the most was the way she blushed. She fucking blushed. Nobody in L.A. blushes anymore.

I noticed Jasper nod his head in my direction, she faced me and lifted her sunglasses on top her head. If I thought she couldn't be any more gorgeous, I was completely wrong. She eyed me up and down, and put her sunglasses back on. She looked at Jasper and gave him a small smile and nodded. He bent down to kiss her cheek, and this time he shook her hand and began to walk back over to me.

"So, what's the deal?" I asked when he got back.

"Her name is Bella; she's in town for a few days." Bella, how fitting, I thought.

"Okay and what now? Did you get her number?"

"Nah, we are meeting her for lunch at the Ivy in a couple hours."

"The Ivy, that's just wrong, isn't that a little cliché, even for you?" I knew Jasper liked the Hollywood hotspots, but even I had my limits for getting my photo taken.

"It's not a big deal; we'll just ask to be seated inside. Besides, it's just lunch. What's the worst that can happen?"


	2. It's Just Lunch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 2: It's Just Lunch
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine.

Bella Swan

After we settled into our rooms, Alice and I passed out. I woke up a couple hours later starved. Alice was still in her Lunesta induced slumber. I remembered an awesome looking pool, and figuring that we were in L.A., I would try to get a little bit of sun and have poolside lunch.

On my way down to the pool, I couldn't help but notice people staring at me. I couldn't stand when people gawk, didn't they know it's rude? I put on my 'people friendly smile' as Emmett calls it, and made my way down. When I hit the lobby on my way to the pool, I heard a couple of women whispering how I was shorter in person. I'm only five foot four, what the hell did they expect? I haven't grown an inch since the eighth grade, but if anyone would bother to ask me about my lack of height, I would have been glad to tell them that.

I grabbed a giant towel from the racks and worked my way over to a shaded area at the far end of the pool. I saw a flash of reddish-brown hair and laughed to myself. I thought that it would be hysterical if Edward Masen were here at the Four Seasons.

I started to spread out my towel across my chair and deliberate what I wanted for lunch when a shadow appeared over my towel.

"Excuse me, miss?" the shadow asked.

"Yes?" I asked. My eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, but I zeroed in on the most stunning pair of blue eyes I had ever seen.

"I apologize if I'm interrupting you. I'm not am I?" he asked, I noticed he had a smooth yet subtle southern drawl.

"No, is there something I can help you with?"

"I couldn't help but notice that you are here alone?"

"For the moment, yes I am," I didn't feel the need to share that my best friend was upstairs in a pharmaceutical enhanced sleep.

"Well, since you are alone, and assuming you are a guest of the hotel for a few days?" he paused. I nodded in response. "Well then allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jasper Whitlock," he held out his hand. I reached to shake his, he took my hand a placed a kiss on the back of it. I had no idea who this cat was, but he was a smooth mother fucker.

"Bella Swan, it's nice to meet you."

"Bella, please tell me, do you have lunch plans this afternoon?"

"For the moment, my plans are not set in stone. I'm guessing that you are going to offer to take me out to lunch?" Jasper started chuckling.

"Ms. Swan," he began, but I cut him off.

"Jasper. Let's can the Gone with the Wind bullshit formalities, okay? I'm here to attempt being non-translucent and you are hitting on me, am I correct?" He nodded with a smirk.

"Bella, I am here with a friend of mine. We just finished up a dreadful meeting, and are in need of a bit of excitement. Would you join us for lunch at the Ivy?"

"Who is your friend?"

"He's standing right over there, he may look familiar, maybe not," he shrugged. I looked over to where he was indicating. I removed my sunglasses for a brief second just to make sure we were looking at the same person.

Holy.

Fucking.

Hell.

It was Edward Masen. Dear God in heaven he was even hotter in person than those vampire movies Alice and I had obsessed over.

I gave Jasper a small smile. "Edward Masen, huh? So have celebrities replaced dogs for single men hoping to pick up chicks?" He let out a small laugh.

"Bella I really have to go. The Ivy, at one o'clock? I do hope you'll join us." I just nodded. He leaned down to kiss my cheek and shake my hand. Smooth, had I been single, I might have actually been turned on by our exchange. More than anything, I was amused.

He turned and left to walk back over to his friend, I couldn't help be replay what the hell had just happened. There was no way Alice was going to believe me, but her reaction was going to depend on whether or not I was going to tell her. That part remained unseen.

I adjusted my towel and spent the next forty-five minutes trying to absorb deadly UV-Rays, my idea of lunch by the pool was completely forgotten.

I made my way back up to the room, only to find Alice sitting on my bed.

"Hey, what did you want to do for lunch?" I asked.

"I'm not feeling so great," she said, her face twisted in pain.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"This happens sometimes when I travel. I took that sleeping pill on an empty stomach, so that's not helping."

"You think you're going to stay here for the rest of the day?" she nodded.

"You wanted to check out some bookstores, and stuff anyways. Just go without me. Hopefully I'll feel better tonight and we go grab some room service and watch awful movies. Does that sound okay?" I nodded, but I still didn't feel entirely comfortable leaving her alone.

"Ali, that sounds fine. Are you sure you don't want me stay and take care of you?"

"Bella, I promise, I'll be fine. You go enjoy the sun and the city. I'll be fine."

"Okay, well I'm gonna grab a quick shower and change. If you change your mind, give me a call. Maybe I can pick something up for you while I'm out," she nodded then sprang off the bed, pushing me aside to the bathroom. She slammed the door before I could hear her vomit.

"Al, I'm gonna go shower in your room. I'll check back on you before I leave." I grabbed her room key, my purse and a rather adorable outfit I knew she would approve of. I would like to think that after a few years of being best friends, some of her fashion sense had rubbed off on me.

After I finished my shower, just as I promised I stopped by my room to check on Alice. She was curled under the covers, with a book.

"You gonna be okay?" I asked. She nodded. "I'll see you later; please call if you need anything."

"Love the outfit, Bells," I heard her call. That was the assurance I needed that I didn't look like a complete hooker, which was only adding to the butterfly house between my ribcage. I had decided on an eye-lit navy cotton sundress that was a tad shorter than I was used to, with it falling mid-thigh. I paired it with a pair of white kitten heels, and a pair of sapphire stud earrings, light makeup, and pulled my hair into a high ponytail. I gave myself one last check in the mirror and left. I couldn't help the feeling that I was forgetting something, but I brushed it off. I was being paranoid.

I arrived at The Ivy fifteen minutes late. It was just my luck that that I had the one cab driver in LA that didn't know where the damn place was. Either that or he was jerking me around to raise his fare and tip. I'm guessing it was the latter.

I walked up to the hostess stand. "Excuse me, I believe I'm supposed to be meeting someone, but I'm not sure if they are here yet."

"May I ask your name please?" I cringed, I always hate this part. I knew this place was known for celebrities, but at least in New York I was used to the stares. Would the stares be different because I'm on a different coast? I had always liked to lay low, stay out of the media. Unfortunately with my engagement to Emmett, that was no longer a possibility.

"Bella Swan," her eyes flashed with recognition, but thankfully she just nodded.

"Your guests are expecting you. Please follow me." She gestured for me to trail behind her. When we arrived at our table I gulped, but plastered on my best smile and pushed my sunglasses to the top of my head. I was not going to let Edward Masen or Jasper Whitlock see that the patio would intimidate me.

"Bella, you came!" Jasper sounded excited. Edward and Jasper both stood up.

"I don't believe we had the chance to meet earlier. I'm Edward." Good lord, the man was handsome, and his voice sounded heavenly. The only thing comparable to the smoothness that was Edward Masen's voice was putting on a fresh pair of silk pajamas after shaving my legs.

"Edward, it's nice to meet you," I shook his outstretched hand. When we touched, I felt a warmth, overtake my hand, letting our fingers linger a second longer than normal. "Jasper, good to see you again," I couldn't help roll my eyes when kissed the back of my hand again. "Easy there, Rhett." Jasper let out a burst of laughter, causing Edward to raise an eyebrow.

"It seems Bella is a fan of Gone with the Wind," Jasper said, to fill in Edward. "I hope you don't mind we took the liberty of ordering you a glass of wine."

"Thank you. I have always been a fan of the three martini lunch." I raised my glass in appreciation.

"Ah, so if Jasper is Rhett, and you are Scarlet, does that make me Ashley?" Edward asked. I was impressed; the boy could keep up, not just a pretty face.

"Nah, I think Jasper would be the better Ashley, you would be Rhett. He was the scoundrel after all," I glanced at Jasper who snorted into his drink as I took a sip of mine.

"So, tell me Bella. Jasper said you are just visiting? What brings you to L.A.?" Edward asked.

"I have several meetings to attend to that couldn't be done over the phone, so here I am." I felt instantly guilty for not mentioning Emmett.

"You know, I can't help but notice that you look familiar, but we've never met. Where are you from?" Edward asked.

"I'm from New York."

"Wait…your last name is Swan, from New York?" I nodded. I thought we already covered this. "Any chance you're related to Charles Swan?" I nodded. "As in Charles Swan of Swan Media Group?" Jasper asked.

Oh shit.

"He's my dad."

Jasper clapped Edward on the shoulder. "Holy shit, Son! I told you nothing to worry about!"

"Excuse me?" I asked, now I was genuinely confused.

"It's nothing, sorry." Edward apologized as he shot a death glare towards Jasper. I wasn't going to let this go, but I heard my phone start to play Claire de Lune.

"I'm sorry, guys. I thought I turned this off," people were starting to look towards our table; I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks. I quickly silenced the call. It was from an unknown number.

"Debussy huh?" Edward asked.

"Yup. My parents made me learn to play piano as a kid. When I finally got to choose my own songs for recitals it just called to me. Weird, huh?" I found myself rambling.

"What about you, Eddie? You play?"

"More or less."

"Forgive my thespian friend here, Bella. Eddie is still trying to shake off the alcohol induced stupor from earlier." Jasper informed me, throwing his arm over Edward's shoulders.

I was going to ask what the hell was going on; something about this whole exchange was just…weird. I attempted to lighten the mood.

"So let me ask you boys a question."

"What the hell is there to do in this town that isn't cliché?" Since walking into The Ivy, Edward let out his first hearty laugh, which in turn caused my lady parts to turn to silly putty, read; sticky and wet.

"Jasper, if you were trying to get in my pants, surely you could pick better than a place than this? Are you going to ask me to compare my shoe size to Marilyn Monroe?" I could barely keep a straight face.

"Darlin', trust me. If I wanted to get in your pants, I would be there already."

"So you're saying you don't find me attractive or you think I'm easy?" Edward snorted. I never thought anyone snorting would be sexy. I was wrong.

"On the contrary, you are very attractive and easy is not the word I would use to describe you. You're not my type."

"Fair enough." I didn't care, I was just grateful the talk was off of my family and the air was lighter. "So how do you boys know each other?"

"Jasper and I have known each other since we were kids." I glanced to look at Edward as he spoke; his eyes were staring straight at my mouth. I licked my bottom lip out of instinct. I could feel the damn blush start creep up again, and I looked away. I shifted my eyes back to rememorize his jaw line, the bastard smirked at me. He fucking smirked at me. If we weren't sitting outside, I would have asked if someone had turned the heat up.

"I moved out to LA, Jasper came with. He's my manager."

"That's sweet," my voice was wavering; I was trying like hell not to let him think he was getting to me. Just then our server came back with our drink refills, and we placed our orders. I hadn't even looked at the menu, so I ordered the first thing I saw.

"A burger, Swan? Impressive." Edward said.

"How so?"

"Most girls order salads, and water."

"Is it wrong that I like meat? And I'm not like most girls." I winked. Edward's eyes darkened. The sexual tension was palpable, I could almost taste it, I could feel my nipples hardening and rubbing against my dress, forcing me to silence a moan.

"So I've noticed." Edward's voice was ruggedly low.

Edward Masen

After leaving the hotel, we headed down to pick up my car. The thought of spending time with Bella, was exciting. When he told me we were having lunch at The Ivy, I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"Really, Jas? The fucking Ivy?"

"What? She's not a local, tourists live for that shit," he grinned.

"Seriously, how cliché is that though?" I hated that damn place. Tourists going there to "star watch", the food sucked, and the damn cameras were everywhere. The last thing I wanted was to have a picture taken with a "mysterious brunette."

"You'll like this chick. She's smart, so I hardly doubt your panty dropper smile is gonna help you get this one."

"You talked to her first, she's all yours," I offered

"Nah, she's not my type."

"That's right, you said she was smart."

"Fuck you, Son! I like 'em a bit shorter and lighter for various rotations," he winked at me. "I don't think she's like the normal girls here, I like her."

"How so?"

"Well for one, she called me on my bullshit and two; she didn't run across the pool deck asking to have your babies."

"And three, she even caught Carlisle's attention." I said.

"Huh."

"Yeah." Carlisle may have fucking temper, a foul mouth, and give his opinion to anyone who didn't ask and not give a shit about their opinions, his only exception was women. He was married and held the ultimate respect for women, especially his wife Esme. The fact he mentioned an attractive women, well…that was saying something.

"Four, you didn't see her up close. The girl has her own coin, no worries about her poking holes in the rubbers."

"That's just wrong," I said laughing. "Thanks for the ride," I called as I got out the car and walked to mine. I said a silent "thank you" prayer that I only had a parking ticket.

Jasper and I drove separately to the restaurant. He had plans for later in the afternoon with some friends who were in town, that I had no interest in meeting. Not to mention, I was counting on taking Bella back to my place, if not her hotel room. That would be more convenient, but I had a gut feeling that this girl was different.

She arrived fifteen minutes late to lunch. I didn't see her arrival, but I knew she was in the area. The noise of the restaurant seemed to die down, my senses were heightened, and I could feel her presence. When we shook hands, I noticed how soft her skin was, and I felt an instant relaxation that I hadn't felt in years, I didn't want to fucking let go. I instantly wondered if she thought she was too good for a quickie in my car.

Throughout the entire course of our lunch, I learned a lot about Bella. She was fucking smart and made me laugh, she never hesitated to put either Jasper in our place, and she was a Swan. Not like the bird, but as in the daughter of the man who could make Rupert Murdoch shine his shoes. She liked her burgers extra well-done, had an intense passion for football, hated being in the spotlight and she played the piano.

There was chemistry between us. I knew she could feel it. Every time our eyes would meet, I could feel my pulse pick up and sitting down started to become very uncomfortable. Occasionally I would catch her staring, and I couldn't help but smirk at her blush. It was too fucking adorable. At one point I swear I saw her nipples through her dress. Fuck, even Jasper noticed there was something going on.

Bella excused herself, as soon as she was out of earshot, Jasper started grilling me.

"What the fuck is going on here?" he leaned over and hissed.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm not sure I want to leave you here alone with her." I looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Again, what the hell are you talking about?"

"If I leave here to meet Peter and Charlotte can you promise me you won't bend her over the table and fuck her?"

"Ah, you saw that too huh?"

"I'm surprised Entertainment Tonight hasn't shown up and asked who the future Mrs. Masen is. I like her."

"Yeah. Me too."

"Don't fuck this up, son. I know you and your issues. She'd be good for you; she can give you the ass kicking you need, in more than one good way. I will say it again, do not fuck this up." His tone was serious.

To say I liked Bella, was an understatement, I was smitten and intrigued at the same time. She was everything I could have ever asked for in a woman and personified. There were only two problems I could see in our future. The first was that she lived in New York, and I was in LA. The second problem was more of my issue. Could she handle being seen with an actor?

Bella came back, we immediately straightened up, and I could tell she was curious about our exchange, but wasn't going to ask.

Jasper spoke up. "Bella, my dear it was an absolute pleasure to meet you."

"You're leaving?" she asked, for a brief moment I saw something flash across her face. Panic? Excitement? Dread? Hell if I knew.

"I have somewhere I have to be."

"It was lovely to meet you, too." Jasper stood up and kissed her on the cheek. He turned and looked at me, and gave me a knowing look that said 'we are not done', I just nodded in response.

"Eddie, I'll see you later at home." He turned and left.

"So what are your plans for the rest of the day, Bella?"

"Actually, I was wondering if you knew of a good bookstore near here. My assistant who is currently holed up with food poisoning in her room has requested that I stay away for the next few hours," she chuckled.

"I don't think you are going to find a decent bookstore around this area. Are you partial to this area?"

"I didn't rent a car for my stay down here."

"You're in town for almost three weeks and you didn't rent a car?"

"There was a change of plans," her tone of voice caught me off guard, I didn't ask any further.

"Alright Ms. Swan, where can I take you this afternoon?"

"Are you serious?' she looked down at her watch, "holy crap! It's not even the afternoon; did you know we had been here for over two and a half hours?"

I nodded, "Is that a problem?"

"Uh, not exactly. I need to make a phone call really quick," before she could dial, her phone rang with the Monday Night Football theme. She held up her finger as she answered, "Hey Em! I was just about to call you."

"Hey babe! How's your day been?"

"It's been great. How was yours?"

"So did you do anything interesting today?"

"Not really, Alice has food poisoning from sushi last night."

"Bella, are you sure?" his tone was a bit more firm.

"I'm sure." She turned her head and the voice was muffled. She turned and looked at me, her face was absent of all color. "Emmett, I swear to you, it's just lunch. I promise I will explain more lately," she paused and listened as the muffled voice. She cut him off, "Jesus Christ on a cracker McCarty, did you forget to take your jock off today? If you don't pull your head out of your ass, you would know not to believe anything that fat fucker says!" she hissed in a tone sharp enough I felt my balls shrink into my ribcage. She looked down at her hands as the man on the other line continued talking; she raised her eyes and met mine. There was no doubt she was in panicking. "I didn't think about it, I swear! It's back at the hotel, it was an accident."

"I will call you back when I've calmed down." She slammed her phone shut and glared at me.

"Tell me, Masen. Whose brilliant idea was it to have lunch on the fucking patio of the most paparazzi infested place in California?" My breath caught in my throat. She was angry. It was the fucking sexiest thing I had ever seen.

"It wasn't ours. What the hell is going on? Are you okay?"

"No, I am not okay! We are on the first page of Perez. According to him we are having a romantic lunch."

"So, who cares, nobody important reads that shit anyways?" I was irritated, not because of the gossip sites. I was used to that shit. I was irritated because I know she could feel the energy between us, and she was denying it. She was downplaying the unspoken connection.

"Apparently they do."

"Like who?"

"My fiancé."

Oh. So maybe I had more than two problems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fic rec's: Expectations of Success by LASMKE


	3. It's Just the Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just the Aftermath
> 
> AN: Thank you all so much to those who have marked this story for their favorites and marked it in their alerts! It's very encouraging.
> 
> Beta'd by Irritable_Grizzzly. She's awesome.
> 
> Disclaimer: Not mine.

Bella Swan

"You never thought to mention that before? Where's your ring?" he hissed and leaned over the table.

"Not that I owe you and explanation, but I left it back at the hotel," I snapped. "My pressing issue right now is how the hell do we get out of here without being hounded?"

"See, that's where this is your problem, and not mine," he sat back with smug look on his face.

I felt as if I had just been slapped across the face. Maybe this whole mutual attraction thing was just in my head. This whole notion of sleeping with someone just because I could before I got married was one of the stupidest things I could have ever thought of. I was fooling myself to think that A) I could do this and B) Edward Masen would actually be attracted to me enough to want to fuck me.

I constantly found myself wondering what the hell Emmett was doing with me, and now at this moment, it dawned on me, I could lose everything. For what? A fantasy? I could suffer from PMS (Poor Me Syndrome) later, now I had to focus on getting out of here.

"You're right, this was a mistake. I should have never come here," I opened my wallet and threw down a couple bills, and stood up to leave. "Edward, it was a pleasure meeting you; I hope we never do this again." I turned and left. I made it to the entrance of the restaurant, and I could already see the flashes from the cameras popping off.

I took a deep breath and put on my sunglasses. I stepped outside, the yelling became instant.

"Bella, how do you know Edward Masen?" His friend hit on me at the pool.

"Bella, are you sleeping with Edward Masen?" If you only knew.

"Hey, Bella, where's Emmett?" Sucker punch, thanks for the reminder assholes.

"Bella, is it true that you're pregnant?" That one made me laugh.

I turned to face the vultures, plastered on my fake smile, and took my sunglasses off; batting my eyelashes. "Hey guys!" I yelled. They all stopped shouting, but the flashes were still blinding. "You guys wanna know something?" I paused and spoke with my best fan girl voice, "Edward Masen and I just had lunch! So, to answer your questions, we met here, we were both having lunch!" I let out a fake squeal; causing some of the photog's to laugh.

"I am not sleeping with Edward Masen. I know you haven't forgotten Emmett's early work. It's not even comparable I'm sure." I flitted my hand casually, they all laughed again. Suckers.

While Emmett was in college, he was injured his freshman year. Since he wasn't allowed to practice, he took up modeling in his spare time. I still give him shit for it.

"To answer the next question, Emmett is in New York. I am here for my dress fittings, and I am not pregnant. There is a reason I'm wearing white for my wedding. Now, I really must be going boys, any chance you can snag that cab for me over there?" I pointed to a line of cabs near the curb. I heard at least three photographers call the cab over for me. One of them actually opened the door, fucking priceless. "You boys have a great day. I don't care what anyone says, you guys are great." I blew an exaggerated kiss before climbing in the cab. "I believe Edward Masen is still in there, good luck!" I called out before the door shut.

Once in the cab I called back Emmett. He picked up on the first ring.

"Bella, what the fuck is going on?" he sounded slightly more calm.

"Babe, I swear nothing is going on. I was by the pool at the hotel, and one of his friends approached me and asked me out for lunch. I won't lie, Em, I was curious. After all the joking we had been doing, I thought it would be funny, I really did. I don't know what those pictures are that are online, but you know how these things can get blown out of proportion," I pleaded. "Besides, there was someone else there the whole time."

"Bells, swear to me, there is nothing going on."

"I swear to you. It was just lunch. If you wait a couple hours, I can promise you that you'll love the press conference I gave just now." I was lying. It wasn't just lunch, at least not for me. Something in me had changed. I was always comfortable and content in Emmett's presence. I was happy for the most part with him, but spending time with Edward, it was different.

"Bella, please tell me you didn't…"

"No! Of course not! I learned not to joke about sex tapes, but…." I paused, "I may have mentioned your GQ days…"

I could hear him exhale through the phone. "You know for a Media Relations manager, you really suck at dealing with the press. I gotta run, Bella. My mother is about to have a stroke."

"I have no doubt. Tell her to have a vodka tonic on me. I'm gonna go, I need to check on Alice. She's got food poisoning…" I heard a click telling me another person was calling in. Charlie. Fuck awesome. "Em, daddy is calling."

"Have fun with Charlie."

"Good luck with Maria. I love you."

"I love you too."

I hung up with Emmett, dreading the phone call with Charlie.

"Hey, daddy"

"Isabella Marie Swan!" I cringed.

"Yes?"

"Why am I getting phone calls trying to confirm that you are having an affair with some actor?" Oooh, he was pissed. I could tell by the tone in his voice that Renee was probably rubbing his shoulders or tempting to give him a de-stressing blow job.

"Okay, I'm only going to say this once and I'm going to tell you the same thing I told Emmett. It was just a lunch. Nothing happened, there was another person there the whole time, and I swear nothing is going on."

"Have you seen the pictures yet?"

"Not really, but I did hold a mini-press conference."

"Oh Bella, tell me you didn't…"

"No, I did not mention sex tapes. Jesus! Why won't you all just let that one die?"

"Take a look at the pictures, Bella. It's not too hard to jump to conclusions." His voice was soft. I knew that tone too, it was his tender voice. I gulped, what exactly did he see?

"Alright, I will look at them when I get back to the hotel."

"Let me know if you need anything."

"I will. I am really sorry for this whole mess, I really am."

"I've gotta run. The Post is having a field day with this. I'll talk to you later Belly." I was relieved he used my childhood nickname. It meant he was easing up on me, but I knew this wasn't over. I needed to look at those pictures.

I leaned back into my seat. I felt guilty, but it was guilt for the wrong reasons. I had the feeling like I had done something wrong. I needed to talk to Alice. She would be able to help me sort throughout this whole ordeal.

Maybe imagined the whole thing, the connection between the two of us. I just know that the times when our hands accidentally touched in the bread basket or when he shook my hand at our introduction, I felt calmness and a sense of something right. I didn't know my life was missing anything, but now that I felt this new energy, I wanted it, and I craved it. It is possible to crave something or someone, if it's all one sided? My brain told me that it wasn't just my imagination, that he did want me too. He had offered to spend more time with me after lunch, so that could have possibly meant something, right? I couldn't, hell; I shouldn't let my self hope like that.

After getting to the hotel, and checking on Alice, who was still passed out, I decided to login and see the pictures. If I thought I had been slapped before at Edward's attitude, this was nothing. I could feel the color drain from my face. There were three pictures on the site with Pepto colored background.

The first was of our introduction, our hand touching, when my eyes had shot to his, to see if he felt the feeling of whatever it was in his hand too. For some odd reason, I felt violated having these pictures up on the internet. I felt like my privacy had been intruded upon, but with the feeling of anger, also came the feeling of hurt.

The second was of Edward and I in an intense gaze, our time together seemed to have a few of those, but my guess this was right after I had ordered my food. The photo looked like an intimate moment, shared by two lovers, not that of two people who had just met for the first time. I felt a flutter in my stomach at the memory of the past few hours.

I scrolled to the third picture posted. It wasn't nearly as incriminating as the first, because Jasper was in the picture, and could see the three of us laughing. I was a bit more relieved, but not by much.

More than anything, I felt guilty for feeling this way, when I'm supposed to be marrying someone else. Edward Masen had thrown me to the wolves, in a sense, but I felt guilty for pulling him into this. He was an ass; there was no doubt about that. Masen was a cocky, handsome, charming ass. But still, he didn't deserve to be in the middle of this shit storm I had created.

Edward Masen

Engaged.

Well that's just fucking great. As pissed as I was, I instantly regretted being an asshole to her when she asked for my help. I know she worked in some kind of public relations, but it was still wrong to throw her to the wolves like that. The moment she was out of sight, I missed her presence, and ran after her. I watched her get into a cab, but I couldn't believe my eyes. She was smiling and one of the vultures actually opened the door for her. I found myself adding intrigued to the growing list of emotions that I felt towards Bella Swan.

Bella had mentioned pictures on that damn celebrity gossip site. I honestly didn't mind, more than half the shit on those sites isn't true, so I've learned to ignore it. I know the truth, and that's what mattered. She lied to me that was the truth.

Did she lie? I never asked her if she was involved with someone. Being engaged, that's not shit you just leave out. Fuck it, whatever. I know I wasn't the only person that felt the connection, Jasper wouldn't have mentioned anything if he didn't see it too. I didn't ask. That was my fault, if I had asked and she said no, that would be a lie.

I left The Ivy and somehow got into my car, avoiding the paparazzi. The bastards had the nerve to try and follow me to my car, asking me if I had any response to the statements Bella had already made. I told them that everything Bella had said was the truth, even though I had no idea what she said. I felt the pang of guilt again about the way I treated her when she asked what we were going to do. If Elizabeth were here she would have slapped my on the head and tell me she raised me better than that. I needed to apologize.

I grabbed my iPhone and called 4-1-1 and asked for the number of the Four Seasons. If I could get her room number, I could at least leave a message.

"Thank you for calling the Four Seasons, this is Jane, how can I help you?"

"I need to be connected to Bella Swan's room please." I waited a few seconds, listening to Jane key information.

"I'm sorry sir. We don't have anyone here by that name. Can I try another room for you?"

"No, thank you," I hung up. At least now I knew she must be registered under a different name. Now my interest was peaked. Why on earth would the media be so interested in her? Her job wasn't that unusual, her family was powerful, sure, but it didn't garner any major press. I remembered the heated phone call that came right before she stormed out of The Ivy, from her fiancé.

I pulled into the driveway and made a beeline to my laptop. I immediately went to Google and typed in 'Bella Swan'. A slew of articles popped up, including sex tapes. Bella had a sex tape? I clicked on the link, and found myself reading an article. Apparently photographers had been caught on the Swan property in the Hamptons, trying to get a picture of Bella and her fiancé by the pool. There were some amazing pictures of her ass in a white bikini, and a couple of her straddling a dude, who was huge. The article was lengthy, but one paragraph captured my attention.

When reached for questioning about the incident, Ms. Swan only had to say 'If you nosy bastards wanted a picture of my ass, all you had to do was ask. I would have gladly given you our sex tape.' Isabella Swan and Emmett McCarty were vacationing at the Swan compound in East Hampton over Memorial Day weekend to celebrate their engagement. No wedding date is currently set.

*Update: Since the date this article was published, Ms. Isabella Swan and Mr. Emmett McCarty have issued a new statement. Ms. Swan has requested that we inform our readers that there is not a sex tape in existence. She sends apologies for raising the hopes of young boys everywhere. The editors of Twilight Magazine wish Mr. McCarty the best of luck.

Emmett McCarty? The same Emmett McCarty that was injured last season playing for the New York Giants? Well that would explain her fascination with football. I went back to my search results, and found hundreds of images of Bella and Emmett. As I clicked on each one, seeing them smiling at each other, kissing, they looked like two people in love. The more and more I searched the, the stronger the urge to vomit became. I was making myself sick. It felt wrong to be looking at these. I couldn't help the overwhelming feeling that it should be me in those pictures, and not McCarty.

I opened a new browser page, and went to Perez's page. As much I couldn't stand it; he was one of the more up to date. The pictures I saw made my heart clench. The images only re-affirmed what I already knew. I was looking at her as if I was about to throw her up against the wall and fuck her senseless. The others made it look as if we were caught in a private moment, despite the fact Jasper was right next to me.

Questions were filling my head. What did she think of these pictures? What did her fiancé think? I still needed to apologize. If I really admitted anything to myself, it was a weak and sorry ass excuse to make contact with her. Right now though, it was all I had, and I needed to find a way to get touch with Bella.

I puttered around my house for hours, thinking. I thought about how I wanted someone that I couldn't have, my family, my career, women I could have; but no longer wanted. I thought about everything and nothing all at the same time. I had promised Carlisle that I would try to catch up on my scripts, but I could never make it past the first few pages. I couldn't focus on anything but the brunette from this morning. It wasn't right that she consumed my thoughts like she did.

I suddenly had an idea. Remembering how Bella said she worked in public or media relations for her father's company, surely she would have a business line or at least a work email. After twenty minutes of digging I was able to find her corporate email. It would have to do for now.

I sat at my computer screen hoping it would tell me what to say, but no luck. I reminded myself that I was writing to apologize, not propose… someone else had already done that. I read the email over and over, and hoped I didn't sound like a complete fucking moron.

Bella,

I hope this email finds you well, or at least better than when you left The Ivy. I wanted to apologize for my actions or rather inactions. It was not fair to leave you alone to handle the press. I do hope in the future that you can forgive me and we can be friends. I enjoyed getting to know you and the few hours we spent together. Please let me know if I can make it up to you with lunch another day.

Edward

PS-I'm also giving you my phone number, while I know it wouldn't fetch as big of a price as a sex tape, please don't sell it.

I hit send before I could erase it and take it all back. It was out there in cyberspace now; all I could do was wait. My house was already clean, Jasper was out, and I didn't feel like going anywhere. I was bored out of my fucking mind. I got up and walked away from the computer only to find myself coming back a few minutes later to check my email. Still empty.

I took a shower. Fuck if I knew why. I was bored, and not concerned with the conservation of natural resources. That shit was up to Leo and Ashton.

No email.

I noticed Jasper was still gone, wondering when he was going to be back, I checked my phone. The battery was dead. I plugged it in the charger and turned it on. I noticed I had three texts.

Grabbing dinner with Pete, be home later. U can join. -J

The second text was from my half-sister, Tanya

She sent me a copy of the pictures from the net, but made me laugh.

You could do a lot worse. Actually, I know you have. Call me, I miss you.-Tanya

The third text message didn't have a name, but I saw it was a New York area code.

Thank you for the email, apology accepted. Pull shit like that again and my selling your phone number will be the least of your concerns. Had to cut my trip short, leaving LA tomorrow night. Maybe next time.-Bella

I was torn. One part of me felt defeated that she wasn't going to be in LA for her original couple of weeks. Another part of me didn't care. I now had Bella Swan's phone number.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'd like to read the alternate ending, please read Snacktime, a series of outtakes for It's Just Lunch.
> 
> Thanks!


	4. It's Just a Change

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N:
> 
> Thank you all so much for everyone who has put this on alert/favorite list/both! Just remember if this is on your favorites list, you will not receive an update when I get around to posting new chapters!
> 
> I don't normally do songs and whatnot for chapters, but the song Meet Me in California by the Plain White T's is perfect…not to mention a great song in general.
> 
> Just want to clarify something really quick. When it says three, four or six weeks later, it is referring to the date of their lunch. So in reality it will be one and two weeks in between. I hope that makes sense.
> 
> Anywhoo…Stephanie Meyers owns Twilight…I ate too much banana bread.
> 
> Beta'd by Irritable_Grizzzly, the Tom to my Jerry.

Three Weeks Later

Bella Swan

"I know you don't want to do this but it has to get done," Alice said with a gentle tone. Ever since we got back from LA she has been treating me with cashmere gloves.

"Alice, I swear to you, I am fine. I will call and cancel the photographer and bands. I really am fine, it's for the better," I assured her. Of course she would think I was talking about postponing the new book release party for a new book that we were publishing, at least I hoped she would know that. I knew I was talking about myself; I suspected she knew that too, but if she didn't she wasn't saying anything.

I meant it when I said that I was fine. The first week back from LA the press was ruthless and overbearing. They followed Emmett and me everywhere we went, analyzing our moves. I have never harbored evil feelings towards the paparazzi, but I was quickly getting there. Thankfully the press seems to have the memory of a goldfish so after the first couple weeks they seemed to back off.

If I was honest with myself, I constantly thought of Edward. I would check online every couple days to see what he was doing, but there was never any word or picture of him. Between the stresses of work, thinking of Edward and trying to not let the thoughts of Edward consume me; I was mentally exhausted. I really wanted to call Edward, just to hear his voice, to take him up on his offer for dinner just to see how he was. I chickened out every single time. I sent his emails to my spam filter, I didn't want to think about him

I knew I needed to talk to Emmett, this wasn't fair to him. I felt like I was being unfaithful and it wasn't right.

"Don't forget you have a meeting with Charlie this afternoon and then dinner with Maria and Emmett tonight," Alice mentioned from her desk.

"Crap, I forgot! I do not need to deal with Maria right now!"

Thankfully I didn't have to end up dealing with Maria, evil shrew of a future mother-in law. The meeting with Charlie ran late and I didn't have to meet with her.

The meeting with Charlie went better than I expected. I knew the company was about to undergo some major revamping and I would be involved, but I had no idea to what extent. My current position with SMG or Swan Media Group was as a Media Relations Director. Technically I was supposed to oversee all parts of our print media division and dealing with press releases, but I liked to focus on the publishing aspect. I enjoyed working with the authors who were turning their books into movies; I had a better connection to authors than actors…until as of recent. Somehow I always found a way to let my mind wander back to Edward, but I had to find a way to stop thinking about it.

One of the new authors, Leah Clearwater, that we had a contract with had her first book turned into a movie. At the time that she signed her contract with a rivaling publishing company, she had signed a one-book deal. After the initial sales of her book flopped, the rivaling company opted not to renew her contract; then the book caught the eye of a screenwriter and after reworking some of the details it became a popular movie script that took no time selling to one of the major movie studios.

The popularity of the book quickly took off; and the demand for the book to have a sequel became huge. Leah, who was now scorned with her former publisher signed on with Swan Media Group, namely my division to finish the rest of the books for her series. The potential for the books to all be turned into movies, along with subsequent spin-offs was epic. This was a huge deal for us and Charlie wanted me to oversee everything that had to do with the press. I was now in charge or orchestrating press releases, book tours, press junkets for the movies and anything else that can require a positive influence and garner attention in the public. To quote Charlie "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players, but Isabella…somebody had to build the stage and fill the seats." When he mentioned Jacques quote from As You Like It I couldn't help but think of Edward again. Would he want to see me after I've been ignoring him? Would I run into him if I went to LA again?

If thinking about Edward Masen was wrong, I don't want to be right. Could I be any more fucking cliché? No, but I knew Jasper could be with his damn stunt with picking The Ivy to try and impress me. I know Alice would smack me upside the head if she heard me say anything like that out loud.

Three Weeks Later

Edward Masen

The first few days after she sent me the text I figured that she was busy with whatever. After the first full week of no contact I sent her an email to see if she was okay and how she was doing. The second week I was starting to get irritated. I had seen a brief photo of her and Emmett McCarty having lunch; they were laughing and it looked like she was getting ready to throw a ball of bread at him. As fucked up as it sounded, I wanted to be the one in the projectile path of baked dough and bright smile.

Three weeks have passed since I received a message from Bella. I can't even count how many times I have pulled her name up from my contact list and chickened out. Surely she would call me like she said she would. She was all I could think about, it was pretty damn annoying.

There were a few times Jasper and I would try to hit a club or bar which would be pointless. I wouldn't even bother to tear my eyes away from my drink unless the woman was a brunette. There were a few times I was in Carlisle's office that I thought I had seen her, but it turned out the first time was someone from the mailroom and the second was actually a guy with long brown hair.

Instead of starting to rundown any petite brunette with set of legs, the furthest I would venture from my house was the Starbucks around the corner. It was pretty fucking annoying because I would get spotted almost the second I entered the store. I had to stop going there and find another location. I didn't want the crazy fan girls to know I lived in the area.

Four Weeks Later

Bella Swan

I had been home for four weeks when Emmett and I sat down and had a long talk.

We had gone out to dinner with some of his teammates and their wives. While we were in the bar waiting for our table, Emmett stood next to me with his arm around my waist, and all I could think about was how his touch wasn't as warm as Edward's. I thought about the feeling of comfort and sense of right that was in the briefest of touches that Edward and I shared. Emmett's touches were soft and loving, but they weren't warm and they certainly weren't right.

I feigned a migraine and left the restaurant. Instead of going home I walked the city for a little while, taking in the sights, fully appreciating how much I loved Manhattan and compared it to the brief time I spent in LA.

When Emmett got home from his dinner, I told him we needed to talk, and was thrilled that he agreed and that he didn't seem upset. If anything he looked…relieved.

Everything came out, how I had been feeling about the wedding, the pressure from work, Edward and the connection I had felt. I could tell it hurt Emmett to hear it, but he took it surprisingly well, saying he was aware of the stresses. I was also surprised to find out that he had been in the same mindset as me. We were content and happy with each other, but not deeply in love. We loved each other deeply, but we weren't so sure we were in love.

I can confidently say that this was the friendliest, most laughter-filled and loving break up of all time. We still had sex afterwards and oddly enough, it was some of the best sex we'd ever had. Knowing that we were better apart than together had eased some of the tensions we didn't realize were there. Breaking an engagement and a relationship that spanned more than half a decade; I can honestly say that Emmett is one of the few men I will always truly love; even if it isn't in the matrimonial way.

The next day we started making the calls to cancel our photographers, band, caterers and other services we had planned for our reception. We made them sign confidentiality agreements to ensure that we would be the ones to announce our breakup, and not have it leaked to the press. The only person who knew what was going on was Alice, and the only reason we told her was because she was our wedding planner.

I started making the phone calls for my move to the west coast and some time I would have to spend in Canada. There were some issues that had arisen regarding a takeover of a project because some asshole was stealing money from a movie studio. The initial producers of the film had their funds pulled and approached SMG for funding. In return Charlie and I figured that this would be a brilliant move on our part so that we could make more movie industry connections for the series of movies for Leah Clearwater's books.

Swan Media Group decided to provide the financial backing and now I was in charge of making sure there weren't any other issues that would come back and bite us in the ass. Gut feeling told me there might be a few; so instead of sending one of my minions…scratch that, my assistants; I was going myself. By gut feeling, I mean that I was fully aware Edward Masen would be working on said movie. In a sick way, I felt like I was making it up to him for being so cold hearted the past month or so by ignoring me. As long as Alice could keep her mouth shut, it shouldn't be a problem.

I could have stayed in New York for as long as I needed, but I didn't want to. I loved LA and not just for the people or rather the person but the city was much more laid back and casual. I could easily trade in my Christian Louboutins for Chuck Taylor's and no one would be the wiser.

Hollywood here I come.

Four Weeks Later

Edward Masen

There goes the idea of trying to leave my house. The second I step out the goddamned door I feel like I'm about to be accosted. Now I have to drive at least twenty minutes out of my way to get a fucking cup of four dollar coffee.

On my last coffee run I picked up one of the expensive coffee makers that they sell along with almost fifty bucks in coffee beans. Now I didn't have to leave the house anymore.

I also made two interesting discoveries in this time period. Coffee tastes a hell of a lot better with bourbon. The coffee would give me the jolt of caffeine I needed to stay awake to read the scripts that Carlisle and Jasper were sending my way. The bourbon eased my nerves so I wouldn't jump and run to my phone every time I heard it ring or buzz or whatever noises I had it programmed to do. Just in case Bella calls me.

The second discovery that I made is that if I didn't shave and wore a baseball cap and sunglasses, I didn't get recognized as much. It was still easier to just stay inside and avoid people in general. There was only one real person I wanted to talk to and she wasn't returning my messages, texts or anything else I sent her way.

Six Weeks Later

Bella Swan

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?"

"I'm sure, are you okay with this?'

"I wouldn't lie to you, Bella. If I wasn't okay with this, I wouldn't be agreeing to it."

"What about your mother?" I asked.

"I'll handle her," Emmett assured me. "I'm more concerned about you. I know you're a big girl and you can handle anything the media throws at you. Just do me a favor?"

"Name it."

"Promise me that you'll take care of yourself. This is the first time I can remember since I met you that you've done something for you, willingly. Before now anytime you have done something for you has been at my request, Alice's, Jake's or even Renee's." He crossed the room and gave me his signature bear hug.

"I promise," I meant it too. I was doing this for me. I felt bad that it was so close to the wedding date that we were announcing the cancellation of the ceremony. To say Maria was going to be pissed was an understatement. Thinking about it, the woman always did hate me; I would be willing to bet that she will give him a week, tops, and she'll be trying to set him up with someone else.

.

I sighed and flopped down on our bed. "So the press release will be in a couple days; along with the movers that morning and I'll be out of your way on Monday night," I gave him the rundown for the week.

"Don't talk like that, Bells. You know you aren't in my way," Emmett flopped down on the bed next to me.

I turned and looked at him; a question that had been on my mind for the past three weeks was vying to get out. I squeezed my eyes shut and gathered the courage to ask "do you think if we hadn't watched that episode of Friends that we would be here now?" I opened my eyes and saw Emmett staring at the ceiling fan.

"I've been thinking about that lately, and honestly, I don't know. Part of me says that no, none of this wouldn't have happened," I could feel the tears starting to fall, but he continued. "But I also think that we might have gotten to this point eventually, and after it was too late, ya know?" I nodded. He finally turned and looked at me, his eyes holding the same glassy look. "You know I love you and I always will, right?"

"I love you too. I just wish that it didn't have to be like this," I choked back a sob. He reached over and lightly brushed away a tear trailing down my cheek. "You're just saying that so you can still go to Leah's premiere with me Friday," I tried to laugh but the sound game out more like a dying goose.

"Bella," his voice was almost a whisper. "If at any point you change your mind, I'm here for you, please believe me. Just because you brought it up first, does not mean you are alone in this decision. You can't beat yourself up anymore over this, nobody is faulting you."

"Yet."

"Belly, don't start, please?" he begged. "You are going to California, and you are doing to do great things. Charlie wouldn't be sending you out there if he thought you were going to fail. The timing works out well for us, that's all."

I rolled to my side and placed a chaste kiss on his lips before snuggling into his side comforted by his arms wrapping around me. "Hey Emmy?" I asked, my voice muffled by his chest muscles.

"Yeah, Belly?"

"Are the umbrellas packed?"

"I have no idea, why?"

"I think we're going to need it for the shit storm that's about to hit."

"We're going to need more than an umbrella, babe."

Seven Weeks Later/Present

Edward Masen

"Yo, dickhead, wake your sorry ass up!" Jasper yelled in my room.

"What the fuck do you want now?" I growled.

"Today is your intervention day," he walked in my room and sat at the foot of my bed. "Shit, Eddie. When was the last time you took a shower?"

"Intervention day? What the fuck are you talking about? I'm not on drugs."

"No, but your sorry ass has been moping around for the past month and a half and it's damn time you pulled your shit together. Ever since the Swan chick left you've been a sorry excuse for a millionaire movie star."

"Why the fuck do you care?"

"Besides the fact you pay me to? You're my friend, Edward," his voice was softer this time. "Edward, listen. I know you fell for the girl, I get that, she was pretty fucking cool. But man, she's engaged! It sucks that she didn't tell us right off the bat and I know it's even worse that her picture is everywhere right now. You hiding in seclusion is not going to make things better though. I hate to say this, but she's just a girl, LA is full of them, you do remember it was only six weeks ago you were beating them off with a Louisville slugger."

"Fine, I'll get up, but don't think that your little speech here is what is instigating it. We're out of Jack." I pulled myself out of bed and headed toward the bathroom.

"We're out of a lot more than Jack," he said.

I spun around and glared at him. "What do you mean?"

"We're out of liquor, period," his voice was firm.

"Tell me you did not throw away all the liquor in my bar!" he remained silent. "What the hell Jasper? That wasn't your shit to throw away."

"Like I said, you are a sorry excuse for a person right now. I'm concerned, Carlisle's concerned, when was the last time you called your mom? You haven't done anything but mope around here in a drunken stupor feeling sorry for yourself. You need to return Carlisle's phone calls, because I'm sick of dealing with the asshole. You need to pick your next couple projects, and you have a premiere that you promised Irina you would attend on Friday. You still have obligations, but if you keep going the way you are going, nobody is going to want you around."

"Fine, I'll tell you what. You fall for a girl, have said girl ignore you when you know without a shadow of a doubt that she felt the connection too." I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed. "Look, I promise I'll call Carlisle back, it's the least I can do."

"No. The least you can do is take a fucking shower."

"Whatever, but I'm not shaving!" I said as I padded off to the bathroom. After I stripped down and stepped into the hot water, I could really smell myself. Holy fuck, I did reek. It was the realization I needed, the kick in the ass so to speak. How did I let myself get this low? I spent a few hours, albeit a few wonderful hours with a woman who was everything I had hoped for with the exception of being engaged. How the fuck does that slip by? Oh yeah, because she fucking left that detail out! I wonder how her fiancé took the news when he saw the pictures, I couldn't help but smirk at the thought. She deserved whatever she had coming as far as I was now concerned.

The past six weeks had put me in hell. At first I was excited at the prospect that we would be in touch, but she hadn't even tried to call, text or email me since I received her first message. The more I dwelled on the pictures from the internet and thought about the subtle looks and touches from our lunch, the more I found myself analyzing the whole afternoon.

I stepped out of the shower and quickly got dressed in a pair of basic jeans and black tee. Walking into the kitchen I saw Jasper sitting at the island with a fresh cup of coffee reading one of the trade magazines with a very intense look on his face.

"So what's new in the world of casting couches this week?" I asked, grabbing a clean mug from the cabinet.

"I don't think you're gonna like this," he said with his eyes not leaving the paper.

"Seriously, Jazz, what is so intense in that stupid paper that I'm not gonna like?" I leaned against the counter sipping my coffee.

"Let's go out for breakfast, yeah? I could go for some cranberry pancakes," he folded up the paper and tucked it under his arm. He stood up and grabbed his car keys off the counter.

"I'll go, but not until you tell me what is going on." I was beginning to get irritated. What on earth could be so bad that he didn't want to tell me what Variety had to say.

"Let's get in the car and I'll tell you." I sighed and could tell I wasn't going to win this battle.

"Fine, let's go." I followed behind him and slid on a pair of black flip flops by the front door. We got into Jazz's car and drove for ten minutes before I broke. "What is it that you needed me out of the house for so you could tell me?"

"That obvious?" I gave him a look.

"Alright. You know the firefighter flick that you start filming on in three weeks in Vancouver?" I nodded. "I just received confirmation from Carlisle and now it's in the papers, so I guess you were going to find out, it's just bad timing that this is all happening now."

"You're stalling," I warned him.

"Alright alright! Damn it! The backers and producers from MGM have pulled the funds from the film, remember that slimy fucker James Lawson?"

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He was stealing funds by padding the budget on pre-production costs , the backers and whatnot have pulled from the film because they don't trust anyone from MGM with their money."

"WHAT? What the fuck, so now the movie has no funding? How the hell am I supposed to make a movie with no budget?"

"Shut up and let me finish, Eddie! It is no longer going to be an MGM movie, however someone or rather another company is putting up the funds."

"Okay, well then what does that have to do with me? I'm still getting paid and so are you," I shrugged.

"That's not all…" he trailed off. I glanced over at him to see he was warily eyeing me up and down.

"Jazz…"

"The people who are now backing the project are from Swan Media," I could feel a knot forming in my gut. I knew there was more he was going to tell me and I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it. "They are sending someone to Vancouver from SMG to oversee the publicity of the film directly as well as deal with the financial aspect of it all."

"Do I even need to guess who they're sending?" my voice was meek at best.

"For the financial parts it's some chick named Angela Weber, but they are sending Bella to oversee the publicity of the film."

"Great, I'm going to be stuck in Canada with Bella for four months?"

"It probably won't be for four months, but hey now! This could be a good thing!" he started to bring his southern accent into his voice which means he was getting excited about something.

"What? I get to be reminded of a happy newlywed looks like weeks after she eyefucked the shit out of me for the better part of three hours? Yeah, that sounds like a real good thing," I rolled my eyes.

"The part you're playing is supposed be all dark and angsty and shit, right? What else is better than a constant reminder to keep you in an Emo-ward state of mind? Ya know, all look and no touch makes Edward a mean boy."

"Emo-ward? That's the best you could come up with?"

"It works, go with it."

"Whatever."

"Oh, before I forget, you need to call Irina; she's been busting my balls for the past two weeks about your premier. Apparently there have been some changes she needs to discuss with you."

"What do I need to know? Why doesn't she just email them to me?" I internally groaned. Irina was my publicist. If Carlisle Cullen was the Ari Gold of agents, Irina was that loud-mouth chick Shauna or whatever. Yeah, I watch Entourage…so what? The woman does a damn good job at covering up my fuck-ups and indiscretions, but we hardly ever interact with each other. We normally communicate through snarky emails.

"She has been. Your head has been too far stuck in a bottle to realize that the world has continued on without you, you just aren't responding as she demands."

"Fine, I'll call her later," I was starting to get the feeling that he was still leaving something out. I knew his wanting pancakes was a ploy to get me out of the house so I wouldn't go crawling back into bed after he told me about the Vancouver details. I figured I would wait a little bit and at least see what Irina had to say before pressing Jasper for any more information.

"So where are we headed now for these pancakes that you must have?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"We are going to a place I found last week, and you, my friend and you are buying as a thank you for me being such a fuck awesome person."

"I've been that bad?"

"Yes and I think you still are, but at least I got you to shower and put on some fresh clothes." Jesus, I didn't realize how fucked up I had let this girl get to me..

"I'm really sorry," I didn't know what else to say.

"I know you are. This is the last we'll talk about the Swan girl until you have to deal with her ass in Canada. Even then I'm sure we can find a way for you guys to avoid each other. Surely she can't stay in Canada the entire time, chicks like that can't handle the wilderness for that long without going bat shit crazy for a spa."

"Okay, we're here!" I swear he looked like a kid at Christmas, they were just fucking pancakes, and they better be the best fucking pancakes in the world because my mood was starting to go bad; and fast. I was dehydrated from drowning myself in liquor, I could feel the headache from my hang-over and it was too damn sunny out. I was drying out and had a thin sheen of sweat on my skin. In the sunlight I fucking sparkled. Maybe it was the empty stomach or the news of Bella being around me for four months, but I had a feeling this was not going to be a good day.

Seven Weeks Later/Present Day

Bella Swan

"I'm almost there, or at least that's what my Garmin tells me," I explained.

"Seriously, Bells, you get lost more times than I can count, remember the time we-oh holy fuck Bella!" his voice took on a whispered and excited tone.

"What? We never holy fucked, what are you talking about?"

"I just spotted one of the finest specimens in Hollywood. A movie star just walked in, and he is all sorts of fuckhotness. You won't even believe me when I tell you who it is."

"Trust me when I tell you I am sick of movie stars and their prissy bitch attitudes. Being in a restaurant near one is the last thing I want to do," I paused as I pulled into a parking spot. "Okay, I'm here come find me."

I got out of the car and walked around the corner and saw the man I had been looking forward to seeing.

"Bella!" he opened his arms out wide.

"Jake!" I called out, and just like the million times before, I ran in faux slow motion only to be picked up and swung around like a rag doll in his arms. He set me down and gave me a warm hug. His hugs were always a reminder of the happiest times in our lives, before we had to grow up and enter the real world.

"It's good to see you, kitten. How are you?" he asked as he opened the front door to the Griddle Café.

"I'm good, getting settled in, but otherwise good. How have you been?" It had been three years since I'd seen Jake.

"Good, busy getting settled in, but good. Tired, too."

"I heard about you and Emmett, I'm sorry," it sounded more like a question causing me to laugh.

"Don't be sorry, we aren't. You know he's coming in Friday for that movie premier? I've missed him, ya know?"

"You guys broke off an engagement and a relationship that lasted more than five years, it's understandable for you to miss him," he paused, "but what I meant was, how are you doing? Alice called me to make sure you were taking care of yourself until she got out here. I've done a piss poor job considering she comes in today and this is the first I've seen you in a while. "

"Oh hell, Jake, I'm not a fucking child," we made our way to our table, I plopped down the chair and crossed my arms; my actions clearly contradicting my statement.

"I see that," he raised an eyebrow. We both cracked and started laughing. That was one of the things I loved the most about Jake, no matter what, we could always have fun together and make each other smile.

We had grown up together on Park Avenue, but after our freshman year of college he was drafted into the Yankee minor league team and had to go live in a shit-hole town called Forks, in Washington State. After he was injured and sat on the bench for what was deemed too long of a time, he was traded to the Dodger's AAA team. There he was able to get the proper coaching and development and quickly became one best pitchers in the league. He was like a local hero, but he wasn't a local.

"So don't you want to know who the fuckhot awesomeness movie star is that I saw come in right before you?"

"I'm sorry Jake," I sighed, "I love you more than anything, but you did want to stay in locked in with Tom Cruise? If so, I suggest you tone it down a notch or two."

"Bella, please. I know people suspect already, so I'm not going to change who I am. Besides, I'm a pitcher, it should be pretty obvious," he waggled his eyebrows at me.

"Oh fucking A, Jake! That's disgusting!" I was laughing so hard I almost fell out of my chair, causing Jake to laugh even harder.

"So I will ask again, you want to know about the gorgeous movie star who is here?"

"Not really," I lied. I knew it was Edward, I don't know how, but I did. It was as if I could feel the tension rise in me but also feel settled at the same time.

"Really?"

"Yes really. Why are you pushing this, I clearly don't care."

"Okay, I just remember a couple months ago you had an affinity for green-eyed gorgeous actors," I looked up from my menu to glare at him and he simply shrugged.

"Yeah, and so what if I do?" I felt the blush rising from my chest and spreading across my face.

"Apparently he has an affinity for brown eyed brunette media relation directors; he's been burning a hole in the back of your head since we sat down."

"You're lying."

"Am I? Well I'll tell ya what short stack. I'll give you a few options of what you can do. Option one is you can turn around real fast and piss your pants like you look like you're about to do anyways. Option two is I can lean across this table and kiss the hell out of you and make him incredibly jealous," he licked his lips and wiggled his eyebrows at me. I slapped his head with a menu.

"Option three?"

"Option three is you can go over there and be polite, say hello and call it a day."

"I can't just be polite, I was so rude to him and I've been blowing him off for the longest time. It would be awkward to say the least."

"I think whatever you do it's going to be awkward, I just think that option three is what will be the best case for both of you two. Whoops…too late," his eyes flickered above my left shoulder, "hotness coming in at ten o'clock."

Again I wrote this chapter too damn long (for my tastes) so at least there is another one almost set to go after this one is! Woot for you guys!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My rec's:
> 
> Breaking News by WriteOnTime
> 
> The Orbiting Meteor by Idreamofeddy-this is a Bella/Peter fic, and it is beautifully written.
> 
> Passing By-DeltaSwan90
> 
> Please R&R&R!


	5. It's Just a Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta'd by Irritable_Grizzzly, the Sinatra to my Martin.
> 
> I realize that last chapter was pretty Bella heavy so this time I'm making it Edward heavy even though we start with Bella.
> 
> As usual, Stephanie Meyer has the rights to all things Twilight.
> 
> See you at the bottom…

Bella Swan

"Bella?"

I stiffened. It wasn't the voice I had thought it was going to be, but it was close.

I stood and turned. "Jasper, how are you?" I leaned over and gave him a hug.

"I'm good darlin' how are you?"

he reached for my hand and lightly kissed my knuckles causing me to laugh.

"I'm good. It's great to see you," I smiled and looked at Jake who had an eyebrow raised. "Oh, I'm so sorry, let me introduce you guys. Jasper, this is my friend Jake. Jasper and I met the last time I was in town." I explained.

"It's nice to meet you, man. Would you like to join us?" he motioned for Jasper to sit with us.

"No thank you, I'm here with a friend already," he motioned slightly with his head towards his table and winked at me. Suddenly a look of recognition crossed his face, "holy shit, you're Jacob Black! I'm a huge fan!"

Jake grinned and puffed out his chest, the egotistical fucker. He loved getting recognized.

"Thanks man, that doesn't happen too often. It's always nice to meet someone who follows the game."

"Oh please Jake. You're so full of shit your eyes are brown," I snorted, causing Jasper to bust out with laughter.

"I see our food has made it to our table, so I'd better get going before my friend," he pointedly looked at me, "eats all my pancakes." He leaned down to place a kiss on my cheek, and whispered in my ear, "Please call him, Bella. Believe it or not, he does want to speak to you. I know you have his number." I could only nod in response.

"It was good to see you too, Ashley," he grinned at me. "We'll do lunch sometime yeah?"

"Sounds good, take care; Jake it was nice meeting you,"

Jasper strolled away from our table.

"Yeah, you too," Jake said as I watched him scan Jasper's body. Let's be a little more obvious jackass.

Jake turned and looked at me.

"What?"

"How do you know him and why is he sitting with Edward Masen?"

"How do you think I got to have lunch with Edward Masen? Jasper is the one who introduced us. He's Edward's manager and best friend."

I then realized I never fully explained the whole situation to him. The rest of our breakfast was filled with me telling Jake everything from the Four Seasons to my mini-press conference outside of The Ivy to the email he sent to my work account.

"Wow."

"I know."

"So you haven't talked to him at all, not even through a text."

"Nope."

He let out a low whistle, "that's cold, Bella."

"I know."

We were interrupted when the waiter came, so I asked for the check. He told me that it wasn't necessary.

"What do you mean it's not necessary? How else are you going to make any money?"

"No ma'am, what I mean is you don't have to pay. It's already been taken care of."

"Taken care of? By whom?" I already knew the answer; I just felt the need to ask anyway; apparently I'm a glutton for self-deprecation.

"The gentleman said that if you asked, to tell you Rhett Butler."

The waiter wore a confused expression and clearly lacked the education in classic films detailing the Civil War and awful green drape-dresses. I couldn't help but smile at the thought..

"You're going to call him now, aren't you?" Jake asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It would be rude if I didn't."

Edward Masen

No.

No.

No.

This wasn't happening. It was bad enough that I was fucking sparking like a bottle of cheap nail polish from the ninety-nine-cent bin at the dollar store, but the moment I heard her voice, I could feel the bile in my stomach starting to rise.

Then I heard her laughter along with a man's. Was it Emmett? Was she here with someone else? What if she was sharing the connection she had with me? I started to turn around and look for the quickest exit to get the hell out. We had just ordered our food, so we could easily have it food boxed up.

"Knock it off Ed, you aren't going anywhere." Jasper dangled the car keys in front of me.

"Did you know she was going to be here?" I hissed.

"How the fuck would I know where she would be? I didn't put a GPS in her purse."

I could feel her presence off to the side of me. I looked up from my menu; my eyes focused on the back of her head. I wanted to look around her and see who she was with, but that idea was stopped when Jasper kicked me under the table.

"Fuck asshole! What did you kick me for?"

"I know you're staring at her and trust me, you do not want to do that."

"Why the fuck not?"

"Well for one, she's not facing you, but the guy she's with is. Two, the guy she's with is Jacob Black."

"The starting pitcher for the Dodgers, Jacob Black?" Jasper nodded. I began to wonder if Bella had an affinity for professional athletes.

"He's huge too. I'm gonna go say hello," he stood up.

"Why?"

"Why not? She's never done anything to me. Besides, I wanna meet Jacob Black."

Fucking traitor.

I was having flashbacks to six weeks ago when he walked over to her and talked to her at the pool and kissed her hand. I was now debating the merits of just hiding in the bathroom, but I didn't want to tear my eyes away from the brown hair pulled up in a baseball cap across the room.

My eyes followed him across the restaurant. Her response was surprising, although I wasn't sure what I expected it to be. I was instantly jealous when he kissed her hand. The few minutes that Jasper was gone our food arrived, and I meekly tried to signal him to get his ass back and eat the damn pancakes he had been so anxious for. He made a motion towards our table then leaned down and whispered something in her ear. Her head immediately dropped down, but then she looked at him and nodded.

He strolled back to our table with a grin on his face. He sat down and began eating, declaring that his pancakes were the best he'd ever had. I stared at him, waiting for him to tell me what happened.

He glanced up at me. "Jacob Black's a pretty cool guy."

'That's all you're going to say, Benedict?"

He rolled his eyes, "Dramatic much, Masen? I'm not the one who's in love with her." he shrugged.

"I never said I was in love with her," I hissed. He just stared at me. The waiter came over and I pointed over to Bella's table.

"You see that table over there?"

"Yes, sir."

"This is for them," the server stared at me as I handed him a hundred dollar bill. "To cover their tab," hoping that if I spoke slower he might understand what I was saying.

"If she asks who paid, tell her it was Rhett Butler."

Jasper laughed and shook his head.

"Sir, I'm sorry to pry, but aren't you Edward Masen?" Jasper stood up, walking away silently, but I could see his shoulders shaking from holding in his laughter.

"Yes, I am." I handed him another hundred dollar bill and his eyes grew wider. "Here's an extra hundred if you keep your mouth shut and just do what I ask you," I snapped.

"Yes sir. Thank you."

The server walked off with a quickened pace. A few minutes after he left, I gathered myself, debating on whether or not to say hello, but I chickened out at the last minute. I looked over at their table and it looked like they were involved in an intense conversation where she seemed to be the one doing all the talking. She knew how to reach me if she wanted to. I quietly got up, pulled my cap down over my eyes, and left the restaurant.

Bella Swan

After leaving Jake I got back in my car and called Emmett. The press release that we were ending our engagement came out yesterday afternoon and I wanted to see how he was fairing. The time difference and what he was dealing with would hopefully be a bit of a warning of what to expect on my end when the papers would pick it up.

"So…how is it?"

"It's not bad," he said with a hint of trepidation in his voice.

"Don't bullshit me, how bad is it?"

"Well naturally Maria is pitching a fit that we didn't tell her sooner, I've gotten a few calls from some teammates and there are photographers swarming the front of the building. It's gonna be interesting on Friday," he paused. "Are you sure you still want me to come?"

"First of all, I still want you to come. No matter what you are still one of my best friends, Emmy, and you've been looking forward to this premiere for months. Second thing is not to worry about the press. Just flash your pretty smile and all is right in the world. As for your mother…just give her a bottle of Bombay Sapphire and some fresh limes and I'm sure she'll come out unscathed."

Emmett and I had decided to tell Charlie and Renee about our separation a few days ago. They had been supportive to say the least.

My mother the ever-perceptive being she is, said she saw this coming a mile away. They said they would do whatever we needed to help with the media blitz which would ensue, but it looked as if we had it covered, so they weren't going to worry too much about it.

Charlie was indifferent. He had taken fondly to Emmett, but I guess he knew me better than I gave him credit for. When Emmett and I first became serious, Charlie asked me if I really wanted to be involved with a professional athlete. I told him an athlete was better than a musician. That was all that was said on the matter.

"Well if you still want me there, I'll be there. How exactly are we supposed to explain that our engagement is broken, but you're my date? Well, I guess neither one of us can bring a date either. It'll look like we're swingers or we were both cheating on each other."

"Since when have we cared about the media and what things look like?" I immediately cringed at how big a following we gathered after "Ivy-gate" – as we like to call it - happened. Emmett was silent and I knew he was thinking of the same thing.

"Okay, on second thought let's do this. We show up to the premiere together. I won't be wearing my ring and you'll have to keep your paws off me. I think we can do that, don't you?"

"We could always do a group date. I get a date and you bring a date, we can do that right? It would be weird to double, but I think that might ease tension on all counts," he suggested.

"I would bring Jake, but what about you?

"I'll go with Alice. You know she's probably dying to get into some designer dress," he laughed.

"I'm going to pick her up from the airport in a few hours; I'll ask her then if that's okay," I offered.

"I will do whatever is going to make your life the easiest, Belly. You're the one who moved out there and will be followed around."

I sighed, wishing I could feel romantic love for him again. Whoever wound up with Emmett was going to be a very lucky woman.

"Anyway, my flight comes in Wednesday evening and I have a meeting all day Thursday, so maybe we can get together for a dinner Thursday night?"

"That sounds great, but what's the meeting for?"

"I don't want to say anything because I don't want to jinx anything. I promise I'll tell you everything at dinner. Listen, I would love to talk more with you, but Felix has been bugging the hell out of me all morning, so I gotta run. Love you."

"Love you too, Em," I said and ended the call.

I glanced at the clock and saw that I still had two hours or so before I had to pick up Alice from LAX. I had been without her for twenty-four hours and I missed her. Alice has been my 'person' from the day she insulted my footwear. She's my true partner in crime. If I killed someone and needed to hide the body, Alice was the person who would help me dig the ditch.

She was also the one who issued the press release and her being incommunicado for at least five hours was not going to bode well for her. I stopped by the a local shop to pick up all the food and liquor she was going to need to calm down after returning the calls she'll have missed while in flight.

I got home and quickly put all the groceries away. I stood in my new kitchen debating on whether or not I should call Edward. Would it be too soon? It was just a couple of hours before that he paid for our check. Should I even bother? Should I call Jasper instead? Maybe a text message would be better? I thought better of it; he deserved better than just a text. I blatantly ignored the man for the past six weeks; I owed him a phone call at the very least.

Like many times before, I had his phone number taunting me in the display screen. The picture I had downloaded to appear with his phone number stared at me, daring me; it was as if to I could hear his voice say 'Do it, I double dog dare you. Call me.' It's official. I'm out of my fucking mind. I would call him, I decided. I need to take a shower first, but then I would call him.

No, I couldn't call him after my shower because I had to get Alice from the airport. There wouldn't be any way for me to talk to him with the munchkin all over me. I could call him tonight, but what if he was out with someone? The thought alone made me sick, but it's not like I hold any claim over him; Lord knows I wanted to hold something over him. It had been almost a month since I'd had sex and I've had to replace the batteries in Peter twice. Yes; I named my vibrator Peter. Sometimes I'm too damn clever.

I should call him now, I mused. I would have to forgo the shower and pick up Alice in what I was wearing now. I didn't really give a shit if there were papps at the airport, which there almost always were.

I knew for a fact she would have a coronary if I showed up in cropped yoga pants, t-shirt and Emmett's signature Giants cap. Yes, I would call him now, thank him for breakfast, but then what? Talk about the weather? I needed a game plan. Damn it! This is why I needed more female friends and less guy friends. Jake could help me out, but every other word out of his mouth would be something about awesomefuckhotness or some stupid incoherent shit that would make me giggle.

I would go at this alone. I stared down at the screen again, his green eyes staring back at me. Oh fuck me, yes please. I pressed 'send' and let it ring before my nerves could get a hold of me again.

Edward Masen

"Are you gonna answer that?" Jasper asked over the intercom.

"Why should I?"

"Because the ring tone is really fucking annoying and I know you look like you're about to re-enact the spew scene from the Exorcist; just answer the damn thing!"

"She's calling me."

"So fucking answer it, son!" Jasper yelled from the other side of the house. "This is the call you've been waiting for!"

I needed a mental bitch slap and fast. Un-tuck your dick and you'll stop having a pussy…Man up, bitch! That worked.

"Hello?" I squeaked. I'm now channeling Peter Brady.

Silence.

I ask again, "Hello?" I had a more calm tone.

"Edward?"

I sighed, "Yes?"

"Hey, it's Bella."

"How are you?" I asked, keeping my voice under better control.

"I'm good, really good, actually. How are you?"

"Fine."

"Uhm, I wanted to call and say thank you for breakfast this morning. It was…well it was very thoughtful."

"You're welcome."

"May I ask why you didn't come over and say hello? Don't get me wrong, Jasper's great, but you didn't have to send him over."

"I didn't send him over. I didn't want to intrude on your date. Hopefully this time there won't be any pictures for your fiancé to get upset over," I said trying to keep the venom at a minimum. "The last thing I would want to do is have you run away again. I know how important image is to you," the sarcasm masking my misery rolled off my tongue a little too easily.

"Look, I just wanted to call and say thank you for covering breakfast and to apologize for not being in touch for the past several weeks. I just wanted to let you know that I really wanted to, but…" she trailed off.

"You're engaged, Bella. From what I hear, planning a wedding and dress fittings are quite time-consuming and have high priority. Congratulations by the way on your upcoming nuptials. I never got the opportunity to tell you before." I didn't bother hiding the bitterness in my voice this time. I walked into my room and sat on the edge of my bed.

"Do you think that you're cute by acting like a bastard?" She was furious, and for some odd reason I immediately pictured her in a silk boxing robe with matching gloves. A pissed-off Bella Swan was fucking hot; and I was starting to sport a chubby.

"For someone who graduated from Tisch and NYU, you really are dense," she sighed. I was impressed she knew where I went to school. It wasn't a fact I advertised, but it wasn't something I hid either. Most people assumed that I simply followed in my family's footsteps.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" I was starting to get irritated; it was as if this woman's sole purpose in life was to put me on a fucked up emotional roller coaster. I saw Jasper leaning on the doorframe to my bedroom with a curious look on his face.

"Before I explain the obvious meaning to my statement, let me ask you a question. What have you been doing for the past six weeks?" Before I could answer, she continued. "Let me tell you what I have been doing. The first few weeks I did nothing but put out fires that our little meeting created. After that I focused on working my ass off to save a movie that you are signed on to do. You're welcome for that by the way.

As for the rest…well just pick up a fucking newspaper or go to any major gossip website homepage and you might get caught up to date." Her tone was harsh and cold enough I could feel my balls retreating into my body for warmth. Her voice was loud enough I had to hold the phone away from my ear. Jasper could clearly hear everything she was saying.

She had me speechless. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jasper disappear.

"So I apologize if I haven't had the mindset to send you a text message. Anything I wanted to say I would rather tell you in person because I figured I owed you at least that. I was hoping to make good on my promise and invite you lunch or dinner sometime this week, but I was clearly mistaken now that I know what your opinion is of me." Jasper reappeared with his laptop in hand and wide eyes. I raised an eyebrow at him then signaled him to bring it over.

He whispered "Put her on hold. You need to see this."

"…bye Edward," was the last thing I caught before looked down at my phone. She hung up on me! Fuck! She had said something else and I had a gut feeling that it was pretty fucking important, but I was so focused on Jasper that I didn't pay attention.

"I think you owe the little lady a serious apology."

I rolled my eyes at his idea. "Why would I do that?"

"Remember that talk about how you were essentially a hermit the past month and a half?" I nodded. "Good," he paused, "now when you see this, try not to do something completely fucking stupid."

"Give me the fucking laptop."

He handed me the offending piece of technology and I read the screen. My eyes flicked from the lead article of the Yahoo! entertainment section to his face and back to the screen.

Swan-McCarty Wedding Postponed Indefinitely

What was once dubbed the "wedding of the year" which would have united two of the most powerful families in America, has been called off. An official statement released on behalf of both families claim 'the two remain close friends and the split was very amicable. Both families wish to be granted privacy during this time.'

Isabella Swan, daughter of media mogul Charles and Renee Swan, was set to wed Emmett McCarty, son of Senator Felix and Maria McCarty in less than two weeks. The announcement was made official today, but inside sources claim the split happened nearly a month ago.

There was more to the article, but I didn't bother. I read all I really needed to know. There were now two things I was very certain of: The first is that I owed Bella an apology…again. The second is that I am a first-class asshole and treated her as such. She had called to apologize and to let me know she was available and I did nothing but throw it back in her face.

I needed to fix this and somehow, I didn't think an email would be enough this time.

Bella Swan

What a fucking asshole! I tried to calmly explain my side and this is how I get treated! He may not have been the direct cause of my break from Emmett, but he was a strong catalyst and this is how he treats me?

How was he supposed to know? You didn't get in touch with him.

Shut up voice; although my inner monologue made a good point. I probably should have given him a chance to say something after letting him know I lived in L.A. now. But he was so quiet; if I hadn't looked at my phone I would have thought he had already hung up. The ball was now in his court; in the meantime I knew we would see each other at various social events and as much as it would pain me to do so, I knew I could keep it civil.

I glanced at the clock to see that I was running late to pick up Alice. She was really going to be pissed at me now. I had hoped the phone call to Edward would be short and sweet, and I could explain I wasn't able to talk long and we could get together for a drink later. Instead the asshole goaded me into an argument and even though I might have been a bit more harsh than necessary, he deserved it.

I grabbed my keys and jumped into my new BMW. I left behind my old truck in New York for Emmett to do whatever he wanted with it. My guess was that it was going to charity. The day I flew into L.A. I had gone to my hotel, showered and changed and headed to the BMW dealership to pick up the car I had ordered. It was a present to myself to serve as a reminder that it was okay for me to put myself first. One of the best features was also the simplest. Bluetooth. Just touch of a button on my steering wheel and I could dial anyone. The day I got the car I couldn't even fathom how annoyed Alice and Charlie were.

I made it to LAX with ten minutes to spare. I used those ten minutes to think about various techniques I could use to remove any child-making parts Edward might need in the future. I spotted Alice over the sea of people coming off the tram. She might be pushing 5'1 on a good day, but there was no mistaking her. She stood out in a crowd even if the crowd usually stood over her.

"Dorothy!" I heard her call out; she immediately brought me out of my brooding.

"Glenda!" When she was within arm's reach I gave her a warm hug. I loved it when we used our Wizard of Oz names. A few years ago for Halloween we were having trouble deciding what to dress up as. I ended up being Dorothy and as the obvious choice, Emmett was the Cowardly Lion. Alice refused to be a munchkin and we deemed her Glenda the Good Witch instead. A few other friends rounded out the rest of the characters.

"Is it totally weird that I missed you and it's only been one day since I've seen you?"

"I would be offended if you didn't miss me," I laughed. "So…how bad is it?"

"I haven't turned on my phone yet, and I'm not sure I want to at this point."

I nodded in understanding.

She stepped back and eyed me up and down. "Are you okay?"

"The day has only started and I'm in a shit mood, Ali."

"Do I even want to know?"

I sighed and nodded. "So I was having breakfast with Jake, and you would never believe who was there."

She gasped, "Don't you dare tell me Masen was there."

"Oh he was, and then Jasper came over to say hello, and it was all very friendly. Then, even though Edward never came over, he paid our bill."

She sat there slack-jawed. "I know, right? So anyway, Jake agreed with me that I should call Edward to thank him for buying our breakfast, so I did." I paused, waiting for her to absorb the information.

"Okay, so you called him, then what?" she prodded. Sometimes it was too easy to mess with her

"He was a total asshole! I tried to apologize for not being in touch the past few weeks. I tried to explain to him what I'd been doing. Hell, Alice, I even told him I was the one who saved the movie he was working on! He just kept acting like a jerk, so I told him it was pretty clear what his opinion of me was and I told him when he wants to pull his head out of his ass that he could give me a call. He didn't say anything so I told him bye and hung up."

Alice sat in silence for a few moments. "What exactly do you think his opinion is of you?"

I thought about it. "I believe he doesn't think very highly of me; He thinks I have a fascination with professional athletes and…I don't know. You clearly have an idea, so why don't you tell me?"

"I have no idea, Bells. It's not like I'm psychic or something."

I suddenly remembered my discussion with Emmett. "So how would you feel about being Emmett's date to the premiere on Friday?" She turned and stared at me. "Just hear me out." She nodded, "We were thinking of trying to make a group date of it. I would go with Jake and you would go with Emmett."

"I don't want to go with Emmett. What if I wanna meet a cute single guy and he's going to think I'm Emmett's pity date because you're playing beard to the gay baseball player?"

Okay, I know exactly who Emmett can go with. Just let me make a call really quick?"

I nodded and she turned on her Blackberry. It chirped almost instantly and we both exchanged hesitant looks. She scrolled through her phonebook until she found the number she was looking for.

"Hey, Heidi, it's Alice Brandon, how are you?" She paused, "I'm great. Listen I wish this was a friendly call, but I have a favor to ask. Do you have Rose's phone number on hand?' She paused again, "that's great, thank you so much; would you email me her information? I owe you, Heidi, thank you so much." She flashed me a smile and a thumbs up. "I'll talk to you soon." She hung up.

"So who's Rose?"

"Rosalie Hale." My heart dropped. I remember her being on Emmett's list, but what bothered me more was that she was drop-dead gorgeous. I would be photographed next to her and even though I didn't care how people see me, I didn't exactly want to be compared to her either.

Alice's phone beeped again indicating she received Heidi's email. After punching a few buttons she was on the phone again, presumably calling Rosalie Hale.

"Hey, Rose? It's Alice Brandon…I'm good. Listen, are you in L.A. for the next few days?...You are? Great…listen; I really hate to be so blunt but I have a friend I would love to fix you up with. He's high-profile, but I have a feeling you guys would get along great." She paused and gave me another smile, this time she didn't look so positive. "I won't lie, it's going to be an odd situation…mhmm…Emmett McCarty," she held the phone away from her ear as Rose talked really fast and really loud and completely unintelligibly.

"Actually, I have Bella here with me, and she said she's completely all right with it. She'll actually be there with us. Her date will be Jake Black. I promise I can explain more to you later." She hung up and said, "Call Emmett."

After another fifteen minutes' worth of phone calls between Emmett and Jake, and we were set. I was going with Jake, Emmett and Rose were going together, and Alice was going stag with the hopes of meeting her soul mate. For someone who claimed not to be psychic she seemed pretty confident that everything would work out.

"So," she turned to me, "What are you going to wear Friday?"

AN: The Tisch is the Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. It's a prestigious part of NYU. I actually auditioned there and was offered a partial scholarship so it's near and dear to my heart.

Mad thanks to all those who have reviewed! You review and you get teasers in return!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: The Tisch is the Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. It's a prestigious part of NYU. I actually auditioned there and was offered a partial scholarship so it's near and dear to my heart.
> 
> Mad thanks to all those who have reviewed! You review and you get teasers in return!


	6. It's just a Movie Premiere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta'd by Irritable_Grizzzly, the amazing, incredible friend I'm so glad I met along this journey.
> 
> Changing POV's, which will happen from time to time.

Alice Brandon

"Ali, I am not wearing this! It barely covers my ass!" Bella called from behind the bathroom door.

"Oh yes you are. I did not spend three hours at Fred Segal for you to tell me no. You'll wear it and you'll like it!" I yelled back.

Bella stepped out looking fantastic in a Fred Segal green dress. Her legs looked amazing in it, but she was right; it did barely cover her. I wasn't about to tell her that. I knew deep down she was worried about being next to Rosalie Hale and Emmett. She would never admit it though; they had always had a strange relationship before they were engaged so why she was nervous now was beyond me.

"Bella, you look fantastic, Masen won't know what hit him," I told her.

"Edward's going to be there?" she asked with a slightly panicked voice. Shit! I wasn't supposed to mention that. If Bella knew that he was going to be there, she would cancel and not go. Jasper would kill me if I ruined the effect of it all. We had been orchestrating this for over two weeks; he would not be pleased if I blew it.

"No, well…maybe. I guess he might, he is an actor, they do go to these things a lot," I lied. "Besides, your picture will be taken; he'll see it that way no matter what." Bella shrugged in resignation, believing my explanation.

"Besides, you're Jake's date and you need to look good for him too."

"Trust me, Jake will care more about the dress than he does me," she said as she went back into the bathroom to change.

"Bella, you're a single woman who's in the best physical shape of her life. You have a lot to offer, trust me; Jake won't be able to keep his hands off of you." I knew her confidence was shaky; I didn't have it in my heart to tell her that I thought Jake was gay. That would devastate her.

"Okay, so what time is the car getting here?" she came out of the bathroom in her normal day clothes. For someone who came from the wealthiest and most well-known families, she sure did enjoy dressing like a hobo. Jeans, t-shirts and Chuck Taylors were staples in her wardrobe. I made fixing her closet a top priority for next week on my Blackberry.

"We're to be ready by six, the car is here at six-thirty; it's picking up Emmett and Rose first, then it will be swing by. Jake is meeting us here at five-thirty." She nodded in acknowledgement.

The rest of the day was spent going over the schedule for Vancouver and other meetings that she had for the next couple of weeks. Every now and again I could see her staring off and letting her mind wander. I knew she was retreating into herself and letting her insecurities take over. I couldn't let her do this; she was going to need to muster all her confidence for tonight. If I needed to be her personal cheerleader all night then that's what I would do. Best friends do that for each other.

Around four we started getting ready for the night. She let me do her hair and makeup which she had gotten used to over the years. About a year ago she had finally gotten to the point where she no longer rolled her eyes when I would point to a chair in the mirror. After nearly poking her eye twice with the eyeliner pencil, she gave up and let me do it. I didn't realize how nervous she was. I almost felt bad for her. Almost.

When Bella took this new position with Charlie, she knew it would entail her being in the public eye for more events and not just the days when the paparazzi would see her going into a bodega for tomatoes. She hated being in the public eye, but in a way she asked for it. If she hadn't had that damn lunch with Edward I can guarantee she wouldn't be this nervous. People wanted her picture even more now that she and Emmett broke up. Between the potential for Masen being there (of course, I already knew he would be), Emmett on a date with Rose, the pressure to put on a happy image as the face of SMG, and the general attention from the media, the poor girl was a wreck.

When Jake finally arrived, he gave Bella the confidence boost she needed, constantly telling her how gorgeous she looked, it didn't hurt that we started doing shots of Patron tequila either.

By the time the car arrived with Emmett and Rosalie, Bella and Jake were drunk, or if they weren't drunk they were damn close to it. Official introductions were made all around and what shocked me the most is how nervous Rosalie seemed. It didn't escape my notice that she and Emmett were constantly touching in some way. It seemed that they had to be in contact; their shoulders or hands or knees, it didn't matter. They were always connected. Despite her bitch exterior, it turned out Rosalie was really very nice and personable.

Her eyes kept shifting between Bella and Emmett as they joked around and traded drinking stories from when they first met. Jake would chime in occasionally about bar crawls when he joined them. By the time we pulled up, I could feel myself starting to get nervous. I saw Edward with his date; a gorgeous strawberry blonde, a tall guy with short blonde hair and another tall guy with shaggy blonde hair. I had a feeling that the shaggy guy was Jasper, or at least I was hoping it was Jasper.

He and I had talked on the phone several times since Ivy-gate; his voice was soothing and had a slight Southern drawl. I've ruined a few good pairs of panties while talking on the phone to Jasper Whitlock.

When the door opened, Emmett and Rosalie stepped out first, causing a huge ordeal with the press and screaming fans. Bella started to look panicked again; the tequila must have been wearing off. She spotted Edward, and I could see the blood literally leave her face. Jake noticed it as well.

"Bells, it's gonna be okay. I promise I won't leave your side all night, okay?"

She nodded.

It was our turn to get out of the car, each of us taking one of Jake's arms. The press went crazy again. Bella was shaking against Jake. He was whispering words of encouragement and it seemed to be working.

That is, it was working until I heard him whisper "Relax Bells. You've only had one meal with the guy; you need to have two more before you can sleep with him. Although if you don't, I will."

I don't think I've seen Bella turn so red so fast in all the time I've known her.

She needed to stop this blushing business; otherwise Hollywood was going to kill her.

Edward Masen

I remember when I was a senior in high school; I was lanky and awkward. I had yet to grow into my body. Tanya always compared me to a German Shepherd puppy; utterly adorable with paws and a head too big for the rest of my body.

Thanks sis.

Despite the fact I had famous parents I didn't have a lot of friends, which is why I ended up taking my half-sister to the prom. Thank God nobody actually knew she was my sister because of our last names were different and she went to an all-girls' school. That would've been even more humiliating. Nobody would ever suspect a Denali was actually a Masen.

Almost ten years later, I found myself doing it again, except this time it's a movie premiere, but I still didn't have an escort; so I was taking my sister, again. It wasn't the lack of being able to find a date. There was only one woman I wanted to attend with me, but I was too big of a chickenshit to call her. Plus I was pretty sure Bella hated me.

The movie isn't even that good from what I heard, but in order to keep up appearances that I have my shit together, I had to go. Plus I already promised Irina that I would go and she scares the holy fuck out of me.

I heard a light knocking at my door; I turned to see Tanya standing in my doorway. "Are you almost ready, Eddie?"

"Don't call me Eddie and yes, I'm ready." I crossed the room to give her a hug. "You look gorgeous by the way," I meant it, she looked beautiful. She had her hair pulled up in a simple ponytail and was wearing a silk wrap dress that matched her green eyes. Our eyes were one of the few features that we shared in common. Our nose and height were the only other two indicators of sharing the same father.

"You don't look so bad yourself," she motioned her finger in a circle indicating she wanted me to spin for her. I knew I looked good, as always, but this time I was on edge, unsure of why. I had on a pair of light gray-wash jeans, a black button down shirt with the sleeves rolled to my mid forearms, with a white basic t-shirt underneath. I slipped on my black Doc Marten loafers. I fought like hell to tame my hair, but that only seemed to make it worse.

"I don't look like I'm trying to hard?" I asked.

"Are you nervous? Is this about a girl?" she teased.

"Yes and thanks."

"Hey, can we talk for a bit?" she asked as she sat down at the foot of my bed.

"Of course, are you okay?"

"I'm fine; it's you I'm worried about."

"You're worried about me? What for?"

"Please don't be mad, but I may have talked to Jasper…" Fucking hell. "He's a little concerned for you, don't be mad at him."

I sat down next to her and nudged her shoulder. "I'm not mad at you; I've just got a lot on my mind."

"A recently single New Yorker have anything to do with it?" she asked with a sly smile.

"It might," I looked down at the ground. "I don't know what the hell as come over me. I never get unhinged like this. I'm not sure I like it."

"You like her." It wasn't a question.

"I don't know what's happening to me. Anytime I'm around her or I hear her voice. I can't help but be a total asshole to her. The day we met I had no idea she was engaged and I found myself torn between wanting to introduce her to Ed and Liz and fucking her on the table." I stood up and started pacing, running my fingers through my hair.

"Whoa. Jas was right, you do have it bad." I nodded in agreement.

"Then she called a few days ago to apologize for not being in contact for almost two months and I fucking shut her down. She was actually nice to me and I was a fucking prick." I mentally cringed at the memory of my attitude.

"Well dear brother, that's because you are a fucking prick," she paused for a second to take a deep breath. "Okay, I'm going to tell you something, and you may not like what you hear, so promise you'll hear me out through the entire thing?" I stopped pacing and stared at her.

"Edward, I love you to death, but you are an asshole. Whenever a girl has a chance to get close to you for some stupid reason you push them away. Wouldn't it be nice for you to have someone other than me or Jasper to hang around with?"

I opened my mouth to answer but she held up her hand to stop me. "That was a rhetorical question, Eddie. Stop trying to have the answer for everything. I think one of your issues…don't look at me like that. You know you have issues -as in more than one. I'm not sure where these issues you have with the opposite sex are coming from, but you need to get over it. Ever since your first movie came out you've changed, and at first it was for the better," she smiled at me.

"You were more outgoing, you laughed more, and it seemed like the weight of the world had been lifted off your shoulders. Now it seems that you're slowly falling back to the way you were before. You're more withdrawn, I haven't seen you really smile in ages and look at where we are now. We are about to head to a movie premiere and I'm your date. Unless you want to keep falling backwards and you need to pull your head out of your ass! You're only a few steps away from braces and a bad overbite."

I knew exactly what my issues were, the only problem was the one issue I did have with Bella had been dealt with.

I held up my hands in surrender, "I get it! Can I expect a verbal bitch slap every time you're my date? It's no wonder you're single, T. You really know how to bring a guy down."

"Yeah, well you need it," she said as she hopped off the bed and threw her arm over my shoulder. "So tell me, what are you going to do about the New Yorker?"

We left my room and turned down the hall.

"Well I was planning on apologizing and trying to be civil with her."

Tanya quirked an eyebrow at me. We made our way down to the car that Irina had sent for us.

"You want to be civil with her?"

"Yeah, so?"

"I remember those pictures, Ed, and you just said yourself that you wanted to fuck her on the table. You're completely smitten with her, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Bullshit, I wasn't smitten with her. I was damn near fucking obsessed with the girl and I'd only really seen her in person a handful of times. We had yet to even discuss anything remotely close to feelings or anything personal.

"So what are you going to do about it?"

"I was thinking of calling her sometime next week to see if she would like to get together," I looked at the floor of the town car, not wanting to meet her eyes

"What if you see her before next week?" she had a playful tone in her voice. My head snapped up from the floor. I hadn't thought of that and I told her so. "What would you do if she were at this little shindig tonight?"

"Why would she be?"

"I don't know, just throwing out a hypothetical," she lied. Tanya has always been a terrible liar; it's why we never played poker. Her right foot would twitch and her nose wrinkled.

"Bullshit. What do you know?'

"Me?" she pointed to herself; "I have no idea what you're talking about," she gnawed on her fingernail and looked at me out of the corner of her eye.

"I call bullshit, T. What aren't you telling me?"

"All I'm gonna say is be prepared for anything. L.A. is not that big of a town. Remember who she works for and what her job duties include. That's it and you can't make me say anything else." She stomped her foot.

"Hey, where's Jasper?"

"I have no clue. I got a text from him earlier today saying that he would meet us there; something about meeting with Carlisle.." She nodded in acknowledgment but remained silent.

The forty-five minute car ride to the theatre was spent in relative silence. The only sounds in the car were from Tanya's nails typing on her Blackberry. The car slowly pulled up to the theatre and the driver made his way to our door.

Tanya threw on her 'big smile face' and looked at me expectantly. "You ready for this?"

"Not really, but let's go," I smiled for her.

"It'll be fine, I already see Jasper and Carlisle at the end over there" she said; pointing to them in the corner through the window. The driver opened the door, I stepped out first and my ears were immediately assaulted with screaming. I held my hand out for Tanya who just smirked at me. She linked arms with me and made our way to the carpet runner. I saw Jasper and Carlisle make their way towards us.

"Tanya, lovely to see you again," Jasper leaned in and kissed her cheek; causing her to giggle in reply. She's always had a crush on him, ever since we were kids. Carlisle leaned over and gave her a light peck on the cheek.

"Eddie, glad to see you pull yourself out of your hole and join us," Carlisle patted me on the back, hard. I scowled at him calling me Eddie, but I remembered the cameras and quickly changed my expression.

"Yeah, well I wouldn't want to starve my adoring fans of my presence," I smirked.

"And….he's back!" Jasper said, causing us all to laugh. I could put on a façade if needed.

"I'm going to warn you now, Eddie, Irina is on the warpath," Carlisle whispered in my ear. I nodded. "Okay, we're going to get out of here this heat is killing me, you kids have fun with the press." Carlisle waved to us and walked off.

Jasper, Tanya and I made our way down the carpet, but I soon found myself trailing behind them. The photographers were all yelling for me to pose alone. Apparently they didn't want to get a picture of my manager or a contracts lawyer. I had successfully caught up with them three-fourths of the way down and I could feel the air conditioning coming from inside the entryway of the theatre when I heard another loud round of screaming from the fans and press.

I turned to see who was causing all the fuss, only to see the back of a really tall guy reaching to help pull out a blonde woman. The couple turned away from the car and walked over to the Entertainment Tonight people. Holy fucking shit. Emmett McCarty and Rosalie Hale? What was even more shocking was right behind them, out of the same car, was Jacob Black and Bella Swan. Jacob had another woman on his arm. She was shorter than Bella and had short black hair. The three of them were laughing and walked right past Emmett and Rosalie. Jake leaned down and whispered something in Bella's ear, causing her to turn three different shades of red.

Bella was stunning in a short green dress with gold strappy heels making her long legs look even more fucking phenomenal. She wore her hair down, it looked soft to the touch, and the sun was setting causing the red highlights in her hair to make her face pale face a bit more tan. My palms began to sweat and my heart started racing. She was a natural beauty and the urge to toss her in the back of her car and make her mine was overwhelming.

To say I was confused would be an understatement. I turned to Tanya who had a small grin on her face. "You knew she was going to be here, didn't you?" I asked. She nodded. "How did you know? Do you know her?"

"I don't know her and it's a long story I would love to explain to you sometime, but now is not the time, okay?"

"Oh, I think now is a great time." The venom was seeping through my calm façade.

"Edward, I promise, I'll explain everything. Instead, let's just have fun watching a crappy movie and getting tanked at the after party, okay?" She put her hand on my forearm trying to calm me down.

"Who's the tiny dancer with Jacob Black?" Tanya asked and I looked at Jasper to see him wearing a look of bewilderment and fascination.

"I have no idea. You're his new best friend, Jasper, why don't you go ask him?" I may still have been a tad bitter about breakfast earlier in the week.

"I don't have to. That's Alice Brandon, Bella Swan's personal assistant," he said. How the hell did he know that?

"Jacob just waved to me and it looks like they are making their way over. Better put your pretty little Ray-Bans on Eddie, you're about to go blind," Jasper laughed. I had no idea what he meant. Instead I focused on the way Bella's hips swayed as she walked towards us, stopping and pausing to talk with various people on the other side of the barriers. Not even five minutes later Jacob shook hands with Jasper and was being introduced to Tanya and me.

"Edward, it's nice to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you," he laughed and lightly elbowed Bella. She looked him and glared.

"Edward, lovely to see you again," she leaned over and placed a light kiss on my cheek, she then whispered quickly "go with it and pretend you don't hate me." I could smell a hint of tequila on her breath; she was drunk. The contact from her lips caused my mind to flash back to the first time we touched at The Ivy. My mind wasn't the only thing with a flash. The moment she leaned in my direction we were instantly blinded by camera flashes. I had to close my eyes to prevent being blinded.

I felt that familiar overwhelming sense of calm and comfort again and instantly craved more. I looked at Bella and confirmed that she had felt it too. "Edward, I would like to introduce you my assistant and co-date, Alice Brandon."

"Alice, it's lovely to meet you," I was shocked at her response. She gave me a brief nod and then walked a few feet over to Jasper and introduced herself.

"I think we've lost her," Bella snickered.

"One down, two to go," Jacob said as he winked at Bella. Bella snorted with laughter and slapped him on the chest. I was instantly jealous and wanted to be Jacob's shirt. The thought of being slapped by Bella was oddly arousing. Interesting. Jasper and Alice had taken off inside only leaving Jacob, Bella, Tanya and me awkwardly standing around.

"Bella, are we all set to head in?" I heard Emmett call from behind her.

"I think we're all done here," her voice was clipped. "Jake?" he nodded in response. Emmett walked past us, giving Tanya and me a polite nod. It did not escape the wink he tossed back to Bella. Part of me wondered if this was a sick game they liked to play with each other.

This had turned into one of the most confusing situations I had ever been in. From what I knew Bella and Emmett had been engaged not even a week ago, they broke up weeks before their wedding, but now they are attending a highly public event together but with separate dates? What the hell was going on? I was dying to ask Bella about it, but she was with Jacob and as friendly as the guy seemed; I knew he could easily kick my ass if I pissed her off. She was already pissed at me enough.

I watched her walk off again, still staring at her hips and the way she glided into the theatre. Tanya and I followed them in and quickly found our seats. I was sitting two rows behind Bella. Alice, Bella and Jacob were already seated by the time Tanya and I found our seats next to Carlisle and Jasper. I made my way down the aisle and saw Jacob with his hand on Bella's knee. I felt the jealousy and anger starting to rise. I wanted to be the one touching her knee like that.

The rest of the theatre had people talking in hushed polite whispers; I could hear the faint sound of Bella giggling which slowly grew into a full blown laugh. Other movie patrons were turning in their seats to glare at her and Jacob. Jacob leaned over and whispered something in her ear; Bella stood up and made her way out of the theatre.

I sat there mentally throwing daggers at Jacob's head; Tanya leaned over and whispered "she's alone, now is your chance to go talk to her. The press is probably gone so you guys will have a moment to talk." I stared at her and gulped. She was right; this was my opportunity to do this right.

"Wish me luck," I whispered, earning a large grin from Tanya.

I made my way out to the lobby and saw that Tanya was right. Most of the photographers were gone or packing up their equipment. The lights were slightly brighter in the lobby than they were in the theatre; I had trouble at first trying to find her.

"So are you stalking me now?" Bella asked from behind me. I turned around to see an amused looking Bella leaning against the far wall.

"Stalking you? If I recall correctly, I was here first." She quirked an eyebrow at me.

"You were here first? What are you, twelve?"

"It would seem so, Ms. Swan, seeing as how you enjoy playing the game of tag." I replied.

"Tag?" She uncrossed her arms and pushed off the wall.

"Anytime we seem to make any kind of contact, you run," her eyes flashed with anger. She slowly made her way over toward where I was standing. Instinctively I backed up. She was no longer a pissed-off kitten. She was a lion and I was the lamb. She had claws that could come out regardless if she was the hunter or the hunted and right now she had a look in her eyes that I couldn't place.

"I see," was all she said. I swallowed hard.

"Look, I only came out here to apologize. You called me to explain why you hadn't spoken to me and I threw it back in your face. You didn't deserve it, so I'm sorry." She didn't say anything, so I continued my apology, "you also called to thank me for your breakfast with Jacob and I blew it off like it was nothing."

"Okay," she said softly, she was coming closer. "I accept your apology," she paused in her movements. She was only a foot away from me and looked me straight in the eye. She licked her lips; just a flash of pink from her tongue was enough to renew any arousal.

"I…uh…" this was new for me. I've never been left speechless by a woman. I was intimidated and turned on and scared shitless all at once. We looked into each other's eyes; the electricity that had been slowly starting to build between us was palpable. I tried to speak, opening and closing my mouth several times.

I could feel her hand reach out for me and I closed my eyes waiting for her to touch me. I wasn't sure if she was going to slap me or touch my face. She could fucking sack tap me for all I cared.

But I felt nothing.

I opened my eyes to see her standing a few feet away from me pacing back and forth. She was running her hands through her hair. "Fuck!" she cried.

"Are you okay?" I asked softly

"No I'm not okay, Edward," she snapped. "Does it look like I'm fucking okay?"

I could feel my annoyance starting to rise. How could someone be so fucking beautiful and tempting and so goddamn frustrating and good at pissing me off? I tried to rein in my anger. "Bella, would you like to get out of here?" To my surprise she just nodded.

"What about your date?"

"Tanya? I doubt she'll miss me, I have a feeling she'll know where I am if I don't come back. What about Jacob? Surely he'll miss you?" I thought back to his hand being on her knee and the way he had his arm wrapped around her waist in the press line.

"I'll deal with Jake later," she waved her hand around.

I tilted my head and stared at her. Surely she had to know how badly it would look if anyone saw us leave together. "Are you sure? The last thing I would hate to do-"She held up her hand to stop me from saying anything further.

"I understand it must be hard for you to be civil ninety-six percent of the time, so unless you're going to say something incredibly kind about me, I highly suggest you keep your mouth shut. Clear?"

"Crystal."

"Good," she grabbed my hand; the warmth and calmness immediately taking over, "now let's get the hell out of here. My feet are killing me and this dress…words can't even begin to describe how badly I need to get out of it." She slapped her hand over her mouth and looked at me with wide eyes. I busted out laughing when she realized how she sounded. "Th-th-that's not what I meant!" she punched me in the shoulder.

"Oww, what the fuck, woman? That hurt!" I rubbed where she punched me. If we were ever mugged in a dark alley, I was certain she would have to protect me. "Don't punch me because you have a desire to strip when I'm around." She opened her mouth to protest but shook her head and tugged at my hand for me to follow her.

We slipped through the employee entrance of the back of the theatre and walked a block down the street until we found a cab. "My place or yours?" I asked.

"Mine, nobody knows where I live." She eyed the cabbie warily who was staring wide-eyed in the review mirror. "And we're going to keep it that way, aren't we?" she said with a firm voice looking the cabbie in the eye. Intimidating Bella was back.

And so was my hard on.

We pulled up to a gorgeous home not too far from mine. It was simple and elegant with a touch of beauty in all the details, it was very Bella. As we walked up the drive to her house she asked if I was hungry to which I told her I was. I hadn't eaten anything since my late lunch. Instead of walking through the front door, she led me around back to the side entry of her garage.

"What are we doing?"

"We're going out to eat."

"So why didn't we just take a cab to a restaurant?"

"Well, for starters I don't have any desire to be seen anywhere near the theater. Secondly, I wanted to change before we head out; and third," she looked down and I could see her blush beginning. She opened the garage and flicked on the light.

"Go on…"

"Ugh, fine. And third, I wanted to drive. I just got a new car and after living in New York with Em…after being in the city for so long, I never really drove. I always had car services to take me places, and I like the feeling of power."

"I've noticed," I smirked.

"Will you be okay here for a second while I go change? You can come in the house, but I won't be gone long enough for you to get settled."

"I'll be fine, go change." She slipped off her gold shoes and bolted into the house.

I took a moment to look around her garage and spotted a brand new 2010 BMW M6. It was a gorgeous gold color and I could tell that it already had several body modifications to it.

She wasn't lying when she said she wouldn't take that long. She had only been gone for about ten minutes. "Sorry about that," I looked up and was stunned. She had changed into a pair of sinfully low-riding jeans and a shimmering spaghetti strap tank top with a pair of low slung black heels. She grabbed her keys and slid in to the driver's side of her BMW. "Get in, I'm starving."

"So where are we going?"

"I have made a discovery since moving out here," she said as she looked both ways before pulling out onto the main road. "In New York you can get anything delivered at any time, and there are a million different types of food." I held back the urge to tell her I had been to New York before, but this was clearly something important to her.

"The one thing I was never allowed to have growing up or allowed to do on my own really was get my own food. Even when I was at the office, people would have food brought to me. I never went and got it myself. So I am sharing an indulgence with you, Edward."

I noticed where we were when we pulled into the parking lot. I turned and looked at her. "In-N-Out?" I asked.

"Yes. Tell me a double-double with extra sauce and hot fries does not sound amazing right now." She met my gaze, daring me to contradict her. I couldn't. A greasy burger with Bella after ditching a movie premiere sounded absolutely perfect.

"I'm sold, let's go," I grabbed her hand and gave it a light squeeze. Luckily we walked in and there were hardly any customers. The girl working behind the counter immediately smiled and flashed what I'm sure was supposed to be a flirtatious smile. We placed our orders and stepped off to the side and waited for our food.

"Oh shit," Bella murmured.

"What?" I asked as she nodded her head towards the girl who took our order; she was texting furiously on her phone. "Do you trust me?"

She bit her bottom lip and nodded. Fucking hell that's hot.

"Okay then," I walked over to the young girl and put my hand over hers.

"Hi there," I smiled. Her eyes grew wide and her hand started shaking. "What's your name?"

"J-J-J-Jessica. Jessica Stanley"

"Jessica, it's lovely to meet you. I'm going to guess that you know who I am and who my friend is, is that right?" I asked her with a smooth tone; I spoke low enough so it seemed that it was an intimate conversation.

"You're Edward Masen and that's Bella Swan," I noticed she frowned when she said Bella's name.

"Now Jessica, I'm also going to guess that you just sent a mass email or made a posting on Facebook that we're here, am I right?"

"I'm sorry," she started to apologize.

"Now Jessica, we both know you aren't. But I will make you a deal, okay?" she nodded. "If you send out another message and say that you were mistaken, that you didn't see Bella and me here. We will be more than happy to take as many pictures with you and sign some autographs for you and your friends."

"Can I kiss you?" Jessica fluttered her eyelashes, sending Bella into a fit of giggles.

"You're going to let her kiss you before I have?" Bella mock-scoffed with a mischievous grin on her face.

"That depends," I walked over to Bella and leaned in so my lips were grazing her ear. "Do you want me to kiss you, Bella?" It was the first sort of any outspoken acknowledgement of the chemistry that was happening between us. Bella nodded her head; my heart fluttered and my mind was made up. Bella Swan would be the death of me.

I pulled back and looked into her eyes and gave her a small smile. It pained me to tear myself away from her, if only for a few minutes.

"Not a problem, Jessica. Do you have a camera?" Jessica handed me her phone and then jumped over the counter, it was actually pretty impressive how she cleared it with ease. I passed her phone to Bella.

"Okay, Edward. Give the girl the kiss she wants," Bella teased. I shot her a dirty look than nodded.

I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and Bella held the camera phone up to adjust. "Okay one…two…" Jessica grabbed my face and mashed her lips to mine"…three" there was a quick flash.

"Delete that!" I told Bella, she nodded.

"No!" Jessica shrieked as she lunged for her phone.

"I'm sorry this was such a bad idea." Bella was laughing so hard she was gasping for air. She tossed Jessica's phone to her after she deleted the picture. "Let's get out of here, we can find somewhere else to eat." We quickly left the restaurant leaving a screaming Jessica in our wake.

After we were in the car and had been driving all over the city, we stopped at a red light a few blocks from Bella's house. Silence had taken over and the unspoken tension was rising again.

"So I'm thinking we still need to talk," I heard her say softly.

"Yeah, we probably should," I agreed. "Do you want to just go back to your place?"

"No, Emmett and Alice will be there. Talking is going to be awkward enough. The last thing either of us need is to have my ex-fiancé and best friend around." The thought of Emmett being at her house and possibly spending the night made me tense. It was inappropriate on so many levels. I constantly reminded myself that she wasn't mine and I had no say about how she spent her free time or who she spent her time with. That didn't mean I had to like it.

"Well Jasper is going to be at my place and I'd rather not talk about anything with him around." I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. Why did this have to be so damn hard?


	7. It's Just a Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You guys are unbelievable! The reviews and alerts that have been coming in are mind blowing, thank you all so much!
> 
> My beta is Irritable_Grizzzly, she puts up with my over enthusiastic punctuation and my poor use of "of".
> 
> Like I said before, the next few chapters will be Edward heavy. This whole chapter is Edward, next will be Bella, and then we'll get 50/50 for the most part. It just depends on what they want to say.
> 
> Stephanie Meyer owns all things Twilight, I own a bottle of OPI Catherine the Grape nail polish.

Edward Masen

"I have an idea," I said and pulled out my phone to call Peter. After a brief conversation and an apology for calling so late, we headed for Peter and Charlotte's beach house. When we got there, as promised, they were nowhere to be found. It was just as well, since we weren't going to be going through the house anyway, but they were kind enough to leave some towels on the back porch for us. We spread out the towels and sat for what seemed like hours staring at the waves.

Bella finally broke the silence and asked, "What is it that you want from me?"

"What do you mean?" I glanced to my right and saw her playing with a thread on the towel.

"I mean, what is it that you expect from me? We have lunch and I thought things were great and we were getting along. Then, I ask for help, and you're a complete dick." I opened my mouth to protest but she held up her hand. "Then, you email me to apologize and I tell you that I'll let you know when I'm back in LA. You send me emails and texts and I am truly am sorry that I didn't get in touch with you, I really am. Now, here I am in LA. You buy Jake and me breakfast, but you don't say hello. I call you to try and thank you, and you're a complete asshole."

"I'm sorry." I hung my head in embarrassment.

"I know you are, but now we're here, sitting on this gorgeous beach with a clear sky and I'm confused. Half the time, I don't know whether I want to punch you in the balls or just kiss you. Your mood swings are giving me whiplash, and I'm not sure what you want from me. I need you to tell me."

I sat in silence, stunned at her confession.

"In all honesty, I'm not sure what I want," I lied. I knew what I wanted – I wanted her.

"I would really like for us to start over, get to know each other and see where things go." I grabbed her hand and the easiness that followed took over my senses. "Do you feel that, Bella?" She nodded. "I do know I want this feeling with me all the time, and if that means you have to be with me all the time, that's what I want. I'm a selfish bastard and I'll take what I can get when I can get it."

"I can't give you all of my time and I can't even give you half of me." Her voice was determined. "Christ, Edward! You do realize that I was supposed to be walking down the aisle in seven days, right? When I left to go back to New York, all I could think about was you while I was engaged to another!"

"Hold on a second. Did you and Emmett split because of me?" My hands started to shake with excitement until…

"Don't flatter yourself, Masen."

Oh. Never mind.

"When I got back home, I started questioning everything. I tried like hell to forget you, which is why I never wrote you back. I was engaged to Emmett all the while I had thoughts of you, it wasn't fair to him. Things between him and I were never better – hold that thought." She was interrupted by the sound of her phone vibrating.

"Hello?" she answered. "I'm fine, I'm with Masen. Yeah…Emmy, you need to shut the hell up right now or I'm calling Maria…I thought so. Oh really?" she quirked an eyebrow at me. "No, I'll tell him. Thanks for the heads-up. Okay, I'm going now. Love you, too…Shut up, jackass…bye."

I clenched my hands into the sand to keep from throwing her phone in the ocean. Who the fuck still uses lame pet names with their ex-fiancé? Apparently she does. Who the fuck says 'I love you' to their ex when they're out with someone else? The tone she took with him on the phone was casual and it was clear there was still some emotion involved with her connection to him.

"Okay, so where was I?" She paused and stood up. I wanted to question her about her phone call with Emmett, but I held my tongue. She started pacing in the sand. "Oh yeah, okay. So, things between Emmett and I were great, but I realized if I kept having thoughts about another man, it wasn't fair to him. About three weeks later, we split. It was a mutual agreement that we were better off as best friends than lovers. Emmett was going through something similar and he felt that if I could feel for someone in a romantic way more than I did for him, it was only fair for him to let me go and explore those feelings."

"So you do have feelings for me?"

She stopped pacing and looked down at me. "Remember how I said I was torn between punching you and kissing you?" I nodded. "Now is one of those times, so you need to shut the hell up if you want any kind of action later. Let me finish talking."

Irritated Bella was hot. I kept my mouth shut and let her continue talking. "Right now, Edward, I'm torn. I was with Emmett for the better part of almost six years. We were set to have a life together, and even though I realize that I am single now and I can do what I want, I'm not sure what I want. I'm not sure who I am anymore."

"Being with Emmett, and coming from the family I did allowed me to be taken care of all my life. I don't want that anymore. I liked who I was when I was with Emmett, but I still felt that I wasn't completely myself. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

It was pitch black on the beach. The only light around us was from the moon and the stars, but the look of hope and determination on her face was clear. She wanted me – no, needed me - to understand her.

"You're saying that you want to find yourself and figure things out before you jump into anything with anyone, am I right?" She stood there with her mouth open. "Don't look so surprised, Swan. I'm not as dense as you seem to believe. I listen." I smirked. "But, Bella, you need to understand that you don't have to do it alone."

"If I have someone with me, then how do I know what I'm doing isn't for another person and is what I truly want? I'm not broken by any means, but that doesn't mean I'm not fragile right now. I don't think I can give you what you want. This," she waved her hand back and forth, "could be something in the long-run – we both feel it. Unfortunately, I don't know how long it will be for me to be able to give you something more than just friendship."

I felt like I had been kicked in the gut. That was a word I rarely heard from the opposite sex. I could be friends with any female, but this was the one female I didn't want to be friends with. I wanted to ask her if I could still bury my cock in her pussy if I was friendly about it, but I thought better of it. She was opening up to me, although I wasn't sure why; but I wasn't about to stop her either. The more I could find out about how she worked the better for me later.

"Friend? I think I can do that." I stood up to join her at the water's edge. I held out my right hand for a handshake, but instead she slipped her left palm into mine. The low level current of chemistry passing between us only seemed to get stronger the longer we were silent. The water lapped at our toes for what seemed like hours as we stood holding hands. It was the most intimate moment of my life, and I was sharing it with my friend. It was heartbreaking and humbling at the same time. It was heartbreaking because I kept wanting more; I wanted to help her, but I knew deep down this was something she would have to do on her own. I was humbled because she chose to share her intimate feelings with me. It could be with Alice, Jake or even Emmett, but she chose me.

I could hear my blackberry chirping back on the towel. I was reluctant to let go of her hand. Thankfully, she didn't break our hold as we walked back to our spots. I checked my phone and saw the missed call was from an unknown number, but I could see I had a new voicemail. I would check it later; time with Bella was way more important to me.

"I forgot to give you a message from Emmett when he called earlier."

I looked at her, I ever even spoke to the guy and now he's giving me a message? "Yeah, but I didn't realize he was her date until we got there. I only knew she was going with her brother. I didn't put it all together until we got there. What were the chances that Tanya is Edward's sister and Irina is his publicist?"

"What did he say?"

"He was relaying that Alice was spending the night at your place with Jasper and he was going to Rosalie's house. My house is empty, but yours is going to be a love shack for the next few days unless you kick them out. He said that Jasper would have called you earlier, but his phone died and that Jasper wanted to give you a heads-up that Irina was looking for you."

Fuck! I forgot about Irina. "She's going to kill me, you know that?"

"Not really. So who's Irina?"

"Irina Merriman. She's my publicist and she's scary as fuck, too. You guys would get along great." Bella had a brief look of irritation cross her face.

"Are you saying I'm scary as fuck?"

"Goddamn right you are. Swan, you are beautiful and sexy, and you scare the ever living shit out of me."

"It's a good thing we're friends, Masen. Although, hearing you say 'fuck' turns me on," she whispered in my ear.

I let out a low groan. It was bad enough the breeze was blowing her perfume in my direction. The salty air from the ocean mixed with her saying that my cursing was turning her on – well, let's just say there wasn't going to be a subtle way to get rid of my erection.

"Shit, Swan. You can't say things like that. I feel it is my friendly duty to let you know that I am now thinking of you in a more than friendly way," I countered.

"That sounds like a personal problem to me," she said with a shrug and shot me an evil smile.

We folded the towels together and left them on Peter's back porch where we found them. As we walked back to her car, I debated on asking her a question that had been bothering me all night. I kept glancing at her out of the corner of my eye and running my hands through my hair trying to gather my nerves.

"Spit it out, Edward."

"What?"

"You look like you're constipated and running your hands through your hair. You clearly have something to say, so just say it." Damn she's perceptive.

"Well, there are a few things I've been wondering,"

"Like?"

"Well, for starters, do you have a thing for celebrities or just athletes?" She spun around and then did something I would have never expected.

She fucking slapped me.

"What the hell was that for, Bella?" I rubbed my cheek trying to sooth away the stinging feeling. The image of Bella in a boxing robe hit me full force – not helping.

"Who the fuck do you think you are asking me that? Is this a fucking joke to you? Am I a fucking joke to you? I knew this was a goddamn mistake! Go to hell, Edward." She stormed off towards the car.

"Bella, wait just a goddamn minute. That came out wrong!" I called after her. She wasn't stopping after I yelled; if anything, she was running faster. Running in the sand was a lot harder than it looked. I caught up to her at her car and my heart broke at the sight. She was slumped against the driver side door with her knees pulled to her chest and her head tilted towards the sky. Her eyes were closed but I could see the trail of tears reflecting in the moonlight. I sat down next to her. Her body slightly shifted towards mine, but she wouldn't look at me.

"I didn't ask for any of it, you know," she said softly.

"Bella, I didn't-"

"No, you're going to shut up and listen, and then you can apologize all you want. If you want to hang out with me, you need to learn to control your mouth. Charlie has a saying, 'put your mind in motion before you put your mouth in gear'. Do you understand what that means?"

"I got your meaning."

"Good, now shut up for a second because I'm only going to explain this once." She turned and finally opened her eyes to look at me. I opened my mouth and she quirked an eyebrow, daring me to speak. I shut my mouth and nodded for her to continue. I saw her lips curl into a small smile.

"When I met Emmett, I was working at a bookstore. I didn't know who he was, or who his parents were. I certainly didn't expect him to know who I was. Emmett was well-known for playing college ball, but we were together before he turned pro.

I know Jake because we grew up together. William Black, the CEO of Wolf Investments is Jake's dad. Charlie and Billy are best friends. I knew Jake while he was still in diapers. We are both aware of how we know each other, so before you start saying stupid shit like I'm a star fucker, think about what you say before you say it."

Goddamn it, I felt like an asshole.

"You're damn lucky I like you, Masen. That's the only thing keeping your balls in tact right now." Her smile was slightly bigger than before.

"I can see why you're so successful in media relations, Swan – you're a real wordsmith. Look, Bella, I'm sorry. My question came out wrong. I swear I didn't mean to offend you. I can't promise this will be the last time I'll say something wrong, but promise me that you won't slap me next time. That really fucking hurt."

I touched my cheek again, thankful that the stinging feeling was gone.

"I'm just wondering," I continued, "if you and Emmett were supposed to be getting married in a week, how come he's in town attending a premiere with you but he's not with you? How is it that you guys are actually on a double date? Isn't that awkward? The whole thing is just weird."

"It's not your place to judge, Edward. I can understand what you're saying though. I'll answer your questions, but then no more talking, okay? I'm pretty mentally exhausted, not to mention starving.

"Emmett is in town because he had a job interview and he was already planning on attending with me before we split. We were able to double up, because like I said, Jake and I have known each other for years. He and Emmett played in the same fantasy football league last year after Emmett was hurt. It was awkward to see him on a date already, though, even if the split was mutual. Nobody wants to feel that they are easy to get over, even if they remain close afterwards.

"Our situation is unconventional, I can admit that, but it works for us. Hell, our whole relationship was incredibly unconventional," she added as an afterthought. "It looks as if Emmett is going to be moving out here, so we will be seeing a lot of each other. He was my friend before we were together and he'll still be one of my best friends after this is over. Is that going to be a problem for you?"

Abso-fucking-lutely this was going to be a problem for me. "Not at all," I lied – my second one of the night. I didn't want to make a habit out of lying to her, but I was smart enough to know when to keep my mouth shut.

"Liar."

Busted.

"I don't blame you. I'm close to Emmett, and we tell each other that we love each other because it's true. The circumstances and what kind of love we have for each other may have changed, but it doesn't change that we do still care for one another.

If you want to lie and tell me that it doesn't bother you, then fine – lie. I will hold you to it and then you can't come back later and say that it bothers you. I'm trusting you, Edward. I'm sure you have plenty of platonic female friends and that doesn't bother me. In fact, it would be very hypocritical of me. So I'll ask you again, does it bother you?"

"Yes, it does, but we're going to be just friends, right? If we aren't going to explore what's going on between us in the near future – until you're ready – it's going to bother me that you have other men wanting more than just friendship."

I sighed and was nervous about how she was going to take the next part of what I had to say. "Bella, I meant what I said earlier, about being a selfish bastard and taking what I can get. Right now, if being a friend is what you need and all you can handle, then that's what I'll be. I will want more – hell, I would love more now – but I get that you aren't ready yet. I just want you to know that when you're ready, I will be too." I exhaled and closed my eyes, waiting for her to tell me I was a fucking idiot.

"You're a fucking idiot. You know that, right?" she said and I nodded, knowing she could feel my head move. "Hey, look at me," she said softly. I opened my eyes as she brought her finger under my chin and guided my eyes to hers.

"The only reason I say that is because only an idiot would wait around for a girl to become emotionally available again knowing full-well she might want to meet other people – to be with other people – only for the chance that said girl will come back to said idiot."

"Said girl is worth it," I murmured shifting my gaze away from hers.

"Thank you. I needed to hear that." Our faces had moved closer, her warm breath was lightly brushing against my cheek. "Would you be willing to do a friend a favor?" My eyes shot up to hers only to be distracted to her lips when she ran the tip of her tongue along her top lip.

"What would you like me to do?" I whispered.

She closed her eyes and took a slow deep breath as if she were settling her nerves. If I were to look down, I would have seen that my hands were shaking in anticipation.

She opened her eyes and looked straight into mine. "Would you show said girl what she is coming back to?"

"Close your eyes, Bella."

She closed her eyes. I lightly placed my hands on her shoulders and slid them around her neck. I moved my left hand into her hair and moved my other hand to her waist and lightly placed pressure on her hipbone. I knew I only had one chance to get this right.

I leaned in and gently brushed my nose along her jaw line and placed a light kiss at the base of her ear. I felt her shudder and I couldn't help but smile in response. I pulled back enough to see a small smile grace her lips. I leaned in again and brushed my lips against hers once, then twice. The third time I applied more pressure and instantly felt her respond to me. Her hands balled up the fabric of my shirt and pulled me closer to her, mashing our mouths closer together.

The electricity in the air was beginning to escalate. What was once a calm and soothing hum was now akin to a frayed wire. She pulled back and took a deep breath of air and looked at me with wide eyes. I can only imagine my look was similar and I was met with a small grin. Before I knew was happening, she moved back in with more force than before and pressed her lips to mine. Our tongues met somewhere in the middle and I was lost in the feeling of the wet and strong warmth as they slid back and forth, creating great friction.

Bella let out a faint moan, but it was enough to snap me out of the lust-induced haze we had created. I pulled back and brought our foreheads together. "We need to stop." It killed me to put an end to our kiss. It was, hands-down, one of the most intense and passion-filled kisses of my life. Bella nodded reluctantly in agreement. She stood up and offered me her hand. "You…you might need to give me a minute," I said bashfully.

"Okay…OH! No problem!" Even with the orange glow of the street lamps I could see her embarrassment. She turned around while I adjusted myself and I pushed myself up off the ground.

"I think we need to get you home and fed," I said, opening her car door.

"Where are you going to go if Alice and Jasper are at your place, and Emmett and Rose are at hers? Mine is all empty. I've heard Alice having sex, and it ain't pretty, Masen."

"Jasper lives in my guest house for the most part, although you'd never know it by the way he eats and drinks everything in the main house." I slipped my hand into hers and hoped she wouldn't pull away. "We can go back to your place. I swear to you that I would be a perfect gentleman," I said as I held up my hand in the Boy Scout gesture. "Scout's honor."

"Why do I have a feeling you were never a Boy Scout?" she snorted.

"I went to a thing with Jasper once," I said with a shrug and shot her a quick smile.

"So…Vancouver, eh?" Bella gave her best Canadian accent.

"I think it's going to be interesting and I'm looking forward to it," I confessed. That was the only admission about the Canada filming that I was willing to give. Bella had just spent the past two hours confessing to me that she is excited to be on her own and figure out who she is and what she wants. The last thing she needs to hear is my selfish wants about how I was going to get to be around her for three and a half months.

"Thank you for backing the film, by the way. I never got to properly thank you."

"You're welcome. I read the script, and it's good, Edward. It's really good and I think you're a great fit for the role, but what do I know? I'm just a PR person, it's my job to be there to make sure you aren't banging any extras behind the catering truck, and if you are, it's my job to make sure that it doesn't get out." I winced wondering if this was what she truly thought of me – Masen Manwhore Extraordinaire?

"I don't think you have to worry about me doing anything like that. Is my reputation really that bad that you have that low of an opinion of me? You tell me not to judge your relationships, but here you are clearly throwing out preconceived notions of your own. That's hardly fair, Bella."

"You're right, I'm sorry."

Huh, that was easy.

"So why is it that you're coming? Why not just send a publicist from the studio?" This was something Jasper and I had talked about repeatedly. Jasper was convinced she was going for me, and I was convinced he was a fucking idiot.

"A lot of people at SMG thought that backing the film was a mistake. That SMG wasn't ready to move into that part of entertainment. Leah Clearwater just signed with us and that has been the closest to movies we've gotten. For us to come out and put a substantial amount of money down as our first venture, it's a risky move. Especially when someone," she said as shot me a look, "commands an eight million dollar a film salary."

"What does my salary have to do with it?"

"It means more money we can put into the picture, that's all. Charlie wants me there because he trusts me. If we're paying you that much money for a movie, as well as covering all other expenses, Charlie trusts Angela and me to do our jobs and make sure everything goes smoothly."

"I see, so what happens if I don't hold up my eight-million-dollar bargain?"

"Well that's what Robert Pattinson is for," she bit her bottom lip trying not to smile. I knew she was trying to get a rise out of me. That British fucker had been snagging all the roles that I turned down.

"Whatever," I scoffed.

"We're here," she said as she pulled up to the front gate of my house. I gave her the gate code so we could pull up to the front door. It seemed to me that she was driving extra slow, letting her car coast up the drive. Neither of us was ready for the night to end, but to go any further would complicate and make our relationship/friendship/whatever more than awkward.

"You're sure you don't want to come in?" I offered. Dumbass. What happened to keeping things from getting awkward and more complicated?

"Yeah, I'm sure. I need to get home, and I'm exhausted. It's been a very long day, a great day, but a long one nonetheless. Should I walk you to your door and give you a proper goodnight?"

"So I'm the chick now?"

"Eh," was her non-committal reply.

"I know your feet hurt, love. Don't worry about it. I'll just say good night here." I grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it. We both leaned in simultaneously; the hand that I kissed went into my hair pulling me closer. I cupped her cheek as our lips touched, I opened my mouth and she slid her tongue toward mine, her grip on my hair tightening. I let out a small groan as I slid my hand to the back of her head. Then she suddenly pulled back with a shocked look in her eyes.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" I asked.

"No, I just-I just thought I saw something out there," she stammered as her eyes scanned my driveway and front porch. There was nothing. After a moment she relaxed and brought her lips back to mine.

The kiss this time was more forceful. She put both of her hands where my neck meets my shoulders and leaned over the console. For a split second I thought she was going to crawl into my lap.

Suddenly, out of nowhere there were bright lights coming from outside.

Camera flashes.


	8. It's just a Fight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly for her awesome beta skills...the chick even beta's my A/N's! Kick ass!
> 
> As usual: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight.

Edward Masen

"Edward, what the hell is going on?" Bella asked. This was not a slight panic – she was starting to freak the fuck out.

"I have no idea," I replied, "but I'm gonna go check."

I got out of the car, my eyes searching for someone in the dark. The camera flashes had messed with my eyes, so I was having a hard time adjusting to the dark driveway.

I saw a familiar shadow leaning against my front door. "Jasper?" I called out. The shadow started laughing. "You asshole! Do you have any idea how fucked up this is?" I yelled at him.

"I'm sorry man. It was all Alice's idea." He pointed to the giggling shrubs a few feet away.

"I'm starting to think you need to find your own place to live," I snapped. By now Bella had gotten out of the car and was standing at my side.

"Alice, get your munchkin ass out here now!" she called. Irritated Bella was back, irritated Bella was hot. Yes!

Alice came out from behind the bushes shuffling her feet and looking down. She knew she was busted.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't think-"

"Exactly," Bella cut her off. "You didn't think. Did you consider how bad things were the last time Edward and I were seen together? No, you probably didn't. Instead you thought it'd be funny to scare the ever living shit out of us. Fuck you, Alice. Not everything is a goddamned joke! How the hell did you know that we were together anyway?"

"There were three ways, really. The first is that you were both missing within ten minutes of the movie starting. The second was Jake…"she trailed off.

"And the third?"

"Emmett."

"I'm going to fucking kill him," she muttered. I wasn't sure if she was planning on tearing into Jake or Emmett; either way, I was sure as hell glad it wasn't me.

"You'd think after our arrangement that he'd have a bit of sympathy…you know what, forget I said anything." She waved her hand in the air, leaving me more confused than before.

Now I was curious as to what kind of arrangement was she was referring. Were they really apart, or was this some kind of game to them? I thought back to the wink Emmett had given Bella at the premiere – was that part of it?

"Bella," Alice pleaded, "I swear Jake and Emmett had nothing to do with this. It was all Jasper and me."

This was the exact reason why I didn't have an assistant. There were too many damn people either knowing my business or wanting to be in my business. I'd been burned before by people who had sworn they were looking out for my best interest, only to have found the exact opposite.

Bella Swan

"I know Jake and Emmett aren't behind this. Jake was the one who encouraged me to take off and Emmett is probably so far up Rosalie's ass right now he doesn't know if it's day or night," I fumed.

I knew Emmett would be at Rosalie's giving her the Quarterback Sneak or whatever else he thinks is hilarious. Sex with Emmett was always fun. He's very giving, and Lord knows the man knows how to show a girl a good time. At least someone was getting to have a good time tonight.

To say I was pissed would be a fucking understatement. After we blew off the movie, the fiasco at In-N-Out and then our talk on the beach, this was the last thing I needed or wanted. I guess it could be considered a blessing in disguise. If it weren't for Alice and Jasper thinking they were hilarious assholes, I would probably have been upstairs ripping Edward's clothes to shreds. I wasn't about to let them know that, though.

"Look, I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I just want to go home. Alice, get your wee ass in the car." I let out an exasperated sigh and turned to Edward and gave him an apologetic look. "I'm really sorry things have turned out this way. I don't know when we'll get together again, but if nothing else, I'll see you in Vancouver, right?"

"Right." Edward looked a little surprised that I was taking off so suddenly. The last thing I wanted to do was leave him, but I wanted to deal with Alice and figure out what exactly was going on with her and Jasper.

"Okay then. I'll leave you to deal with your minion and I'll deal with mine."

He nodded. I suddenly felt like we were parents whose kids caught them wrestling naked on a Sunday morning.

Silence took over.

Awkward much?

Oh fuck it. I took three quick strides over to Edward and to give him a tight hug. He wrapped his arms around me and apologized for his asinine manager. I, in turn, apologized for my half-wit assistant and best friend. I gave him a quick peck on the cheek, quietly thanked him for a fun night out, and walked back to the car.

As soon as we pulled out of Edward's driveway, Alice turned to me and told me to tell her everything, and not to leave out any details.

"No," I snapped at her. I was going to tell her everything, but I had to show her that this little shit move that she pulled couldn't come without repercussions.

"Come on," Alice begged, "I wanna know – no, I need to know."

"Well, I guess you should have thought about that beforehand, hmm?"

"Bella, how many times do I have to say I'm sorry?" she pleaded.

"Five more, and then you will have to wait twenty-four hours before I tell you anything."

"Fine," she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

The rest of the drive was spent in silence. Thankfully the house was empty when we arrived home; Emmett kept his word and stayed at Rosalie's place. The thought of the two of them going at it with me down the hall would be unbelievably annoying, not to mention weird. I wasn't stupid, I saw the chemistry those two had. If there were any doubts about our engagement ending, they were quickly laid to rest when I saw how their eyes lit up with each other.

This entire night had been a test of mental willpower; it had to be. There was no explanation for the level of mind-fuckery that was taking place. I must have done something awful in a previous life to put up with the crap that I went through tonight. What else could explain what the fuck Tanya and Irina were doing at the premiere tonight. And how were they both associated with Edward? The odds that everything was a coincidence were just too small, but I knew Edward and Emmett had never spoken or had contact with each other before. They had way too much in common, and if it was all just a crazy and fucked up happenstance, then this was one for the history books.

I needed to get Alice's opinion on all of this. She knew of Emmett's and my understanding, but as of right now, everything was hitting a little too close to home. I would explain everything to Alice the next day, but I needed to let her stew for a little. She was apparently under the impression that butting into my business was part of her job, and for a while I let her do whatever she wanted because it made my life easier. After tonight, I would have to put the kibosh on that.

We got home and I immediately went upstairs to take a shower and wash the sand off of me. I made a mental note to get my car detailed, afraid of how much sand and whatever else we had dragged in from the beach was still stuck to it. In the shower, as I let the hot water wash the day off, I thought about everything I shared with Edward. I had never been more honest with anyone, except Charlie. I surprised myself when I admitted I didn't know who I was without being in a relationship. I was even more surprised when Edward told me he would wait for me to figure out what it was that I wanted.

I still thought he was being an idiot for waiting, but it's his time to do whatever he wants with it. The movie that was being filmed in Vancouver was supposed to last for four months, and I would be spending a total of two months there. Most of my time would be spent between New York and the set.

I got out of the shower and fell asleep in my bathrobe. Right before I shut my eyes, I glanced at the clock and it read 3:30AM. This had been one of the weirdest and longest nights of my entire life, and I couldn't wait to sleep it away.

The next morning Emmett came strolling through the front door, leaving only the screen door shut. He plopped himself at the kitchen island as Alice and I were putting the finishing touches on our pancakes. He was wearing a grin that I knew could only mean one thing. I used to be the one who put that grin on his face. I was happy for him, though; he and Rose seemed to have a natural repertoire that never seemed forced. I was uneasy with the idea that he was so happy to have moved on so quickly, but his happiness was no longer any of my concern.

"So Emmett, I was thinking that while I'm in Vancouver and New York, you could just stay here," I suggested.

"Really?" He looked a little surprised.

"Sure, you can take the time to look for a place since you'll be a west-coaster now." The meetings that Emmett had earlier in the week were interviews to solidify his new position as the offensive coordinator for the Oakland Raiders. Lord knows they sucked something awful, and having him on their payroll would be a vast improvement. Since he had been injured with a severe ACL tear, he rethought his career. He loved playing, but he was getting older and thought he could benefit a team by coaching.

"That's great, thank you so much. I was already dreading having to live out of a hotel or finding a place to rent."

"I do have a few conditions if you are going to be staying here, okay?" He nodded as I continued. "First, you can't bring Rosalie here. I really don't care what you do with your free time, but all I ask is that you remember how this is going to look, okay? I'm going to be in Canada with Masen and you'll be here in my house with Rose…it'll just look bad."

"Bells, I get it. Trust me. I'm a little hurt that you would think I would disrespect your home like that. I thought you would give me more credit."

He was hurt and I couldn't blame him. It was sort of a low blow, and I could feel my jealousy shifting into gear. I wasn't jealous of Rose; I couldn't care less about her. I was jealous that he was already interested in someone else.

I knew I was being hypocritical with my thoughts, but nobody's perfect. I could almost guarantee that he was thinking the same about me, especially since I had met Edward first.

"The other thing I ask is that while you are staying here…" I trailed off. "How should I put this?" I looked at him pointedly. "You touch my car and you die, McCarty. Are we clear?"

"I understand you perfectly. Not a chance I would drive that chick car anyway. Rose and I are going to hit up a few dealerships later this week. Anything else?"

I thought for a minute and shook my head as I took a bite of pancake.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened after you left the premiere last night?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Nope. But I will let Alice tell you about the little stunt that she and Jasper pulled that they thought was absolutely hilarious." I shot Alice a glare causing her to shrink into her chair a little. "So, tell me Emmett, did you know Tanya and Edward were going to be there last night?"

I looked over at Alice who was pretending to be too interested in her breakfast. "Alice, would you please give Emmett and me a moment alone?" She immediately stood up and excused herself, saying that she needed to call Jasper anyway.

"Yeah, I knew Tanya would be there, but I didn't realize he was her date until we got there. I only knew she was going with her brother. I didn't put it all together until we got there. What were the chances that Tanya is Edward's sister and Irina is his publicist?"

I waited until Alice left the room to start speaking again. "So, does Irina or Tanya know about our previous agreements?"

"Oh, god no! Bella! Give me a little more credit than that. What has gotten into you lately? Why do you suddenly doubt my loyalties? Did either one of them say anything to you?"

"No Emmett, they didn't. If Tanya was going to, I don't think she would have said it in front of Edward. Besides, you knew Irina was there too. How is it that I get royally screwed on our deal? What were the odds that all this was going to come back and bite me in the ass and you get off scot-free. Fucking double standards, I tell you!" I cried with mock indignation and banged my fists on the tiled island.

"Awww, Belly come here," he said, holding out his arms. I walked into his embrace. "If anything, you look like the innocent lamb and I'm the big bad wolf."

"I'm going to tell Edward."

I felt Emmett's arms stiffen.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" His voice was laced with tension.

"Yes. I want to be completely honest with him. He deserves it."

"Are you going to tell him everything?"

"Yup. I'm going to tell him about the lists and our deal. I really like him and the last thing I want is for this to get out in some way. I have a good feeling about Canada. Plus, Crowley is going to be there, so the sooner I tell him everything, the faster I can figure out what is going on between us. The last thing I want to do is make things even more awkward."

"Is there anything I can do?" I could hear his heart beating twice its normal pace. He was nervous– hell, I would be too if I were him.

"Nah, but I bet you'll be glad I'm in another country when he finds out about Tanya and Irina. He'll probably be more pissed about Tanya. Are you going to tell Rose?"

"Not unless I have to. I only met her, and as much as I'm into her, I'm not ready to subject her to the intricacies of our past relationship."

"I don't want to talk about this anymore." I looked up at Emmett and saw that he had the same tired look on his face. I moved out of his arms and resumed my previous spot on the other side of the island.

"Neither do I. So tell me, what happened last night between you and Masen? Do you like him? Did he kiss you? Did you fuck him?"

I suddenly felt shy and bashful. These were not feelings I was used to anymore. Flirtatious? I can do that. Coy? Yup, I can do that one too. Hell, I even pull off 'elusive' quite well. But shy and bashful? Not so much. Thinking about Edward made my body react involuntarily. I had the sudden urge to duck my head down and dig my toe in the ground.

"Nice language. Did you fuck Rosalie?" I shot back. For some reason it didn't seem right to be talking about Edward. Whatever was between us seemed more special than that and didn't deserve the level of crassness that Emmett was implying.

"For the record, I kissed him, and I didn't sleep with him – not that it's any of your business. Just like I don't want to know what happened between you and Rosalie." I grinned internally at the thought of Edward and me together. It would only be a matter of time.

"But you want to," he said. It wasn't a question.

"Damn straight I want to. I told him a lot last night, Em. I told him about my independence and how I want to be on my own for a little while."

"And what was his reaction to that?"

"He told me that he would wait for me," I said, smiling into my coffee cup.

Silence fell over the kitchen. After what seemed like hours, Emmett finally spoke.

"Wow. It sounds like you've got a keeper, not that you didn't have one before. Hopefully he won't have to do all the work." His voice had a bitter tone to it and I was shocked. My eyes narrowed at him, daring him to say something further.

"You have something you need to say to me, Emmett?" The coolness in my voice was clear.

"Not really. It's just nice to see that you can be so casual about putting people aside to figure things out. If I recall correctly, you always did what you wanted when you wanted, at least when we were together." He shrugged with mock indifference. I knew what he was trying to do, and fuck it all, it was working.

"That's not fair Emmett and you know it. Don't play the guilt trip card on me." I was angry – how dare he pull his passive aggressive bullshit? "I could very easily say the same thing to you, couldn't I?" He looked down. "And yet I allowed all your indiscretions and never said a word, not a fucking word. I even agreed to participate in it to a point, so don't you dare tell me that I wasn't generous during the time we were together. If that is what you mean by doing what I wanted when I wanted, then you should look in the mirror. You're looking like a black pot right now."

"You never said a word about my indiscretions? Don't go pulling that shit on me that you're better than all that. You had an equal hand in our agreement. What about your affairs?"

"There wouldn't have been an agreement to begin with if you could learn how to keep your dick in your fucking pants!"

I stared at him, waiting for his counter. I knew I wouldn't be disappointed. This was not the first time we'd had this argument, but it was the first time since we were both single. This time it was different; this time the gloves were off. We could say what we needed, and more importantly, what we had always wanted to say.

"Like you didn't have a wandering eye too, Bella."

"Fuck you, Emmett. I would have never done half the shit I did if it weren't for you, and I don't mean that in a good way. I never said I didn't have a wandering eye, but at least I was able to know the difference between window shopping and fucking someone in the dressing room." I knew my analogy was off a bit, but it drove the point home.

"Hey guys?" Alice piped up from the entryway incredibly uneasy. Emmett and I had fought a lot, and Alice was used to it. It was part of our relationship – the hotter the argument the better the sex was at the end.

"WHAT?" Emmett and I yelled together.

"We have company," she squeaked, her eyes darting between us. Behind her, I heard a deep voice clear their throat and I instinctively knew who it was. Alice met my eyes and mouthed 'Edward and Jasper'. I nodded in acknowledgement.

"Great," I muttered.

Emmett stood and pushed himself away from the counter. He was halfway up the stairs when he yelled, "this isn't over, Bella!"

"The hell it isn't," I snapped at him, "There isn't anything more to say. You started it, and I finished it – sound familiar?"

I immediately realized what I just said and clapped my hand over my mouth and saw Alice's wide eyes meet mine again. I wasn't too sure how much Edward heard, but from what I did know, I couldn't blame him if he ran away from the house and never looked back.

Edward Masen

After Bella and Alice had left, I let Jasper know that I was less than thrilled with his idea. It bothered me how much more worked up Bella had gotten than I had. The idea was stupid and childish, but I couldn't really care less. Jasper and I had pulled much more idiotic shit on each other; hell, this was amateur hour compared to some of the stunts Tanya and I had gotten away with before. Jasper kept trying to apologize to me, but I didn't want to hear it. I told him Bella deserved more of an apology than I did.

When Alice called and invited us over for pancakes I knew it was a peace offering of sorts. The thought of seeing Bella after last night was more than enough incentive to get my ass out of bed. I really thought that I wouldn't see her until we left for Canada, since she said she was going to be bogged down in meetings until it was time to leave. The thought of trying to see her over the weekend never even crossed my mind.

We were told to be there around ten-thirty which seemed a bit late for breakfast, but what the hell, I didn't care. I knew I had it bad for the 'brunette New Yorker' as Tanya called her. I'd never let another woman influence me or make me feel the way she had. I was addicted to the feeling of calmness and I wanted more. If it meant that I had to wait for her to sort her emotional shit out first, so be it. I'd wait. I just had to hope that I wouldn't have to wait too long.

I was grateful that Jasper had the sense to ask Alice for directions to Bella's house – god knows I didn't know how to get back there. I just remember being impressed with her car and the exterior of the house seemed to fit her personality. When we pulled up, we were able to see the house completely. It was a huge two story Mediterranean style front with cobble stone driveway and pathways that led around back to what I was assuming was the pool. The front door was actually an outer layer of a solid wood door with an inner layer of the screen door. When we walked to the porch we could see the screen door was shut and we could hear two people arguing, it was clearly Bella and Emmett.

At first the sounds were low but it didn't take long for the voices to escalate.

.

"Should we knock?" Jasper asked.

"I don't know," I said with a shrug. "Maybe we should leave?"

"I know Alice is here. I'll just send her a text and let her know we're out front."

"You never said a word about my indiscretions?" I heard Emmett yell. "Don't go pulling that shit on me that you're better than all that. You had an equal hand in our agreement. What about your affairs?"

Jasper and I looked at each other with wide eyes, not sure what to do.

"There wouldn't have been an agreement to begin with if you could learn how to keep your dick in your fucking pants!" Bella yelled back.

This was obviously not the best place to be right now. I saw Jasper pull out his phone. We started to walk back to the car to wait, but something Emmett said caught my attention.

"Like you didn't have a wandering eye too, Bella."

I froze. This was not what I wanted to hear. Granted, I never knew the dynamics of their relationship, but regardless of how curious I was, I didn't like the idea of Bella straying outside of a relationship; I'd be lying if I said that I didn't feel a little deflated. There was definitely more going on than what Bella had told me, and I had a feeling there was more to this argument as well.

Alice came out to the front wearing a sad apologetic smile. She quickly gave each of us a quick hug which threw me off.

"I'm sorry guys, I had no idea they would be like this. It's been a while," she sighed.

"We can come back another time. It's okay," Jasper offered.

"It's probably better that you're here. It's getting to the point where they start saying things they don't mean." She turned on her heel and headed towards the house. Her statement threw me. They had already started saying some pretty harsh things. The only conclusion I could draw was that whatever they were saying must have been true.

We followed Alice into the house and I felt pity for the small girl. Clearly, this was not her first time breaking up their arguments, but it was clear to see that it wasn't easy on her. I remembered from our lunch at The Ivy that Alice was Bella's best friend and personal assistant, but she had known Emmett for a while.

She popped into the kitchen to let them know we had arrived and both of them yelled at her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jasper's hands ball into fists. I heard a chair scrape against the floor and saw Emmett leave the kitchen.

He went up the stairs and didn't acknowledge our presence; I wasn't sure if he saw us or not. He turned back around and yelled down the stairs to Bella that their argument wasn't over, to which she told him that it was. But what was even more shocking was what she said after that.

"You start it and I finish it, sound familiar?"

The entire house was silent with the exception of a truck rumbling down the street.

"Maybe we should go," Jasper suggested again. This time it was for Alice's sake. I knew he was thinking the same thing I was: this was the most awkward situation we'd been in and neither of us felt like being caught in a war zone.

The way that Bella described their split, although she didn't say much about it, was that it was a mutual agreement and they were better friends than a couple. In the entire time I've been familiar with women, I have learned that there is no such thing as a mutual ending. There are always residual feelings that surface eventually. My guess was that the fight we walked in on had something to do with their separation.

I walked up behind Alice and peered into the kitchen. I saw Bella slightly bent over, her arms spread apart, bracing her upper body, and her head was down. Her shoulders were shaking as if she was crying.

"Bella?" I asked softly. She looked up, I was surprised to see that her eyes were glassy but she didn't look sad, she looked furious. An irritated Bella was amusing as was a pissed-off Bella. But this was something different. This was anger mixed with what looked like defeat, and it was heartbreaking.

"Hey," she said softly. She shook her head and rolled her shoulders to straighten out her posture. "I'm really sorry you guys had to hear that."

"It's fine. Are you okay?" I asked, ducking my head to try and catch her gaze.

"I'm good. So what are you guys doing here? I wasn't expecting to see you for a while," she said, finally looking up in my direction.

"Alice called and asked for Jasper and me to come by for breakfast. I swear we only caught the tail end of everything." It was a bit of a lie, but she looked as if she needed some self-preservation.

"Oh, well I think we have some pancakes left from earlier." She motioned her head towards the stove.

"Don't worry about it. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'll be fine, it was just a fight." She paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. "So, maybe instead of pancakes, we can just have an early lunch somewhere? I can go change and we can head out?"

"Sounds good," I nodded.

I heard a thundering sound coming from the staircase. I turned to see Emmett grab his keys off the kitchen counter. His eyes widened a little and muttered something that sounded like 'hypocrite' under his breath. I glanced back at Bella, her jaw was clenched and her cheeks turned a bright red.

The four of us were seated in a booth in the far back of a local bakery. I had a baseball cap covering my eyes. Short of staying inside and making myself a hermit, there wasn't anything I could do to keep from getting recognized. I was not about to become a hermit again. God knows what Jasper would do to me if I retreated back like that.

We grabbed a table after placing our orders and the silence was very awkward. Nobody wanted to say anything about the fight, but it was clearly on all of our minds. Thankfully Bella was the one to break the silence.

"I'm really sorry about what you guys walked in on today. I'm not ready to talk about it. What I am curious about, though, is how the two of you know each other," she said, indicating Alice and Jasper

Alice and Jasper exchanged looks; an unspoken debate was going on between them as to who would speak first. After a few moments, Alice opened her mouth to speak; it was clear Jasper won.

"It was a couple of days after Ivy-gate and Jasper got in contact with me through the office. We've been speaking ever since," Alice explained.

"That's it?" I asked.

"Pretty much," Jasper confirmed. "Yesterday at the premiere was the first time we'd actually met. Before that it was just emails and phone calls."

Their answer was anti-climactic to say the least. It was a crap answer and we all knew they were both editing their answers.

"I call bullshit," I said.

"Ditto," Bella chimed in and crossed her arms.

"What's bullshit?" Alice asked, her voice squeaky.

"So, what about that day I heard you moaning in your office? Was it really because of the enchiladas we'd ordered?" Bella asked with a smug smile on her face.

"Yes!" Alice's eyes darted to Jasper.

"I knew it! You were phone sexing it up! You know how I know?" She didn't wait for anyone to answer, "Because we never order Mexican. Charlie can't stand the smell and it's banned from the office."

Alice's face went pale then suddenly burst bright red with embarrassment. Meanwhile, I couldn't hold back my laughter at Jasper's expression. His eyes were staring at the table; it was one of the few times I'd ever seen him embarrassed. After a few seconds, Bella let out a loud snort, causing me to laugh even harder. The entire situation was ridiculous enough that it broke the tension from earlier. Afterward, we all fell into an easy conversation about the girls' move to California, plans for Bella's new office, and new scripts I was reading.

On the outside it would have appeared to a normal observer that I was fine, but on the inside I was a wreck. I constantly wondered what Emmett had meant when he mentioned Bella's affairs. What had she meant when she said that she always finished what he started? And what was this mysterious arrangement that was brought up briefly last night and several times this morning? I had several theories running through my head and it must have been obvious to Bella.

"Hey," Bella said softly and nudged my shoulder with hers.

"Hmmm?" I asked.

"Are you all right? You look a constipated."

I swallowed my food and asked, "Constipated?"

"Yeah, you look like you're thinking too hard about something that you know will take time to pass," she said with a chuckle. "If this is about this morning, I promise you I will explain everything later, okay?"

"You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to," I assured her.

"Oh trust me when I tell you that I don't do anything I don't want to do. I want to – no, I need to - talk to you about what you heard this morning. I just hoped the timing would be better."

"Bella, I promise you–"

"Edward, stop talking please. I want to discuss it with you. After lunch, how about we drop the kids off at the house and go back to your place? That way there won't be any interruptions."

Bella alone at my place for the entire day?

Fuck yes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the meantime, check out these kick ass stories:
> 
> Starry Eyed Inside-RochelleAlison
> 
> A Woman Scorned- Belly Baby 24


	9. It's just a Skeleton or Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 9: It's Just a Skeleton or Two…
> 
> AN:
> 
> Holy crap! The reviews have been ranging from outrageously pissed off to people loving the last chapter. Personally it was a pain in the ass to write for many reasons. I don't like making Emmett the bad guy; he's one of my favorite characters.
> 
> I felt really bad about waiting to post the last chapter for so long so I'm posting this one early so that I hope we can all still be friends.
> 
> I know many of you have questions and I promise you that I will answer every single one of them through this chapter and if by some crazy reason I have missed any or you still have questions please shoot me a PM! I will be more than happy to answer any queries.
> 
> Bella's house is linked in my profile. It's gorgeous. Gah! This chapter is all EPOV.
> 
> Thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly for putting up with my commas and semicolons. I have found this story is read best at ¾ screen.
> 
> As usual Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight…I have a thing for Matt Bomer.

Edward Masen

We left the little bakery an hour after Bella successfully "outed" Alice and Jasper. We decided that since we had taken Bella's car there, we would drop Alice and Jasper off at Bella's place, leaving Bella and me alone to go to my house. I had no idea how long it would take for her to tell me everything, or at least what she considered everything. What if I had a question? What if Bella didn't want me to wait for her to come around? Most importantly, there was one question in particular that I was not looking forward to facing: Could she tell me something that could possibly change the way I felt about her?

The opinion I currently held of Bella was that she was incredible in every sense of the word. She was smart, funny, educated, personable, and beautiful. The only trait I would be hesitant to add to the list was loyal.

Physically, she was my ideal woman. She had long hair I could grasp for any number of reasons. Though her frame was small, she had the curves to fill out a nice-fitting pair of jeans. Her legs were incredibly long, which I could instantly envision wrapped around my waist or my neck. It was clear that she worked out, judging from the lean muscles on her upper arms. Her skin was flawless, smooth, and translucent. She was simply gorgeous; Emmett McCarty had no idea how beautiful of a woman he had let go.

The silence in the car on the way back to Bella's place was deafening. Alice and Jasper were so quiet, if for no other reason than because they were still embarrassed to be caught doing whatever it was that they were doing before they even met. I chose not to speak, instead letting my mind waiver back and forth as to how I would take whatever it was that she wanted to tell me. I had a feeling that whatever she had to say was going to make me very unhappy. I was also concerned for her. It was clear that her explanation was going to wear on her, and after this morning I wasn't sure if she could handle much more stress.

After dropping off Alice and Jasper, we headed back to my place. As we pulled up to my circular driveway, I remembered how much of a mess the house had been in before I left. My head filled with images of clothes, dishes, and papers everywhere, and I started to have a mild panic attack. What a woman considers a clean house is completely different from what two bachelors consider clean. To Jasper, clean means that the crumbs on the counter were swept onto the floor; if he can't see it, it isn't there.

Bella shut off the engine and gave me a small half-smile.

"Bella, you really don't have to do this," I offered her one last time.

"No, I want to. Nobody else knows about this besides Alice, and even she doesn't know all the details. If anything, it will be extremely cathartic for me."

I was shocked. I was the last person I expected her to confide in.

"Can we please go inside?" she asked.

"Absolutely."

We climbed out of her car and I let Bella walk ahead of me. I was hoping she would like my home; the entrance is pretty intimidating, but I loved it all the same. The entrance floor was laid with tan marble and the walls were painted a soft eggshell white, as Esme called it. Fuck if I personally knew the difference between white and eggshell. Decorating this house was Esme's dream job. Plus, if I hadn't hired her, I was worried Carlisle would have hid all the decent scripts from me for at least a month. It might sound cruel, but I wouldn't put it past him.

"Edward, this house is amazing," Bella said as she eyed the entryway. We moved in to the family room where I had a large L-shaped leather couch which still had the pillows and blankets from where I crashed last night. She walked over to the glass wall that faced the ocean. While she was taking in the surroundings, I was quickly glancing everywhere to make sure there weren't any shirts or socks lying around – thankfully, I didn't see any.

"Bella," I called from the kitchen. "Do you want something to drink?" I opened the fridge and grabbed a Corona. I had a feeling I would need a drink or two.

"Actually, a beer would be great," she called back.

I came up behind her and wrapped my arm around her waist and presented her with her drink.

"Thanks." Her voice was low.

"Wanna move to the couch?" I asked softly. I could feel her nod and move away from me. We sat on opposite sides from each other as we made ourselves comfortable.

"So, where should I start?" she asked as she stared at her bottle.

"I find the beginning usually works," I said with a smirk, earning one from her in return.

"Okay, but before I start, let me please say one thing."

"What's that?"

"It was always supposed to be just Emmett and me. You were never supposed to be involved in any way. If anything, you were off-limits."

Off-limits?

"Before you ask what that means, just listen to the whole story and it will all make sense, okay?" I wasn't sure how to respond, so I took a long pull from my beer.

"Okay, from the beginning," she began as she took a deep breath. "Emmett and I met when I was in college. I was working for a specialized bookstore at the time. The owner was the only person who knew my family and hired me because of my connections. Alice worked for Emmett's family as a personal assistant of sorts. They had come into my store one day to order some books for a family member who had a new place, and they wanted to fill up their library to impress their snooty friends.

At the time that I met Emmett, I was in a bit of an awkward phase. I didn't have many friends so I was ecstatic when Alice befriended me and told me Emmett was interested in me. He was in his senior year of playing college ball and had been speculated by many to be a top draft pick.

We were complete opposites. He had the reputation as a ladies' man, and I'd never had a serious boyfriend; my nose was always stuck in a book or I was working with Charlie at the office. I didn't mind not dating anyone initially because I knew I was being groomed to take over for Charlie someday. It would be a huge responsibility and I didn't really need or want the distractions at the time." Her body shifted as if she were uncomfortable and was trying to settle in.

"You want another?" I asked motioning towards her near empty bottle.

"Yes, please." I quickly made my way to the kitchen and grabbed two more Coronas for us. I didn't want to get up and interrupt her while she was in the middle of something important. I handed her the drink and re-established my spot.

"Okay," she continued, "So I knew who he was. Jake and I had seen him play several times, not to mention Charlie was a huge fan too. I guess at first I said yes because I was curious what a guy like Emmett would want with a girl like me.

"I knew I was always attractive, but I never thought Emmett would think so. I trusted Alice with her assessment of him. For our first date, we went to a small café and had finger sandwiches and drinks for lunch. It was easy, simple and completely me. It was nothing like 'The Ivy'." She winked at me and smiled.

"So anyway, after that first date, I found out we had a lot in common. We both had the same interests. We both held the same political views, read the same books and we could relate to each other a lot when it came to our expectations and standards in high society. We got along for the most part so we kept seeing each other. We had never made our relationship official, but we spent a lot of our free time together. Our families were beyond thrilled."

"Why would your families care so much?" I interjected.

"Well you know about my family," she said with a nod, "but do you know anything about Emmett's?"

"A bit." I didn't want to tell her that the only thing I knew about his family was what I read in the press release about their break-up.

"Emmett's is part of the 'McCarty's' family. As in the McCarty's that built the new children's pediatric wing of the NYU Medical Center, and held a five-thousand dollar a plate dinner slash fundraiser for John McCain. That is Emmett's family. Seeing the prodigal son of New York City and the heiress," she said making a face at the word 'heiress', "of the most powerful media company together, is socialite gold. Maria, Emmett's mother and evil specimen, insisted that we be together – that we were perfect for each other. What she really meant was that our social statuses were made for each other."

"What about your parents?" I asked.

"Charlie and Renee," she said with a sigh, looking out the window. "Charlie and Renee couldn't care less. They just wanted to see their only child happy. Charlie started out as a small-town reporter covering local break-ins for a tiny paper and worked his way up the hierarchy in corporate America and used his raises to make smart investments. He had a true rags-to-riches story, so when it came to socialite functions and standards, he was oblivious to it all. Renee kept talking about grandkids. She didn't care where they came from.

"So, after our parents found out about us seeing each other, we were suddenly thrust into a relationship. We were happy with each other, but we had never made any declarations about our status. We weren't ready for that. At the time, Emmett was too big of a pussy to stand up to Maria and I was indifferent – so, we just went with it. I was happy with Emmett, and he was all I needed, but I was not enough apparently." She suddenly became very interested in her bottle.

"I didn't need anything else, but he was not ready to be exclusive. So we allowed certain exceptions. Because of how our families were and the potential for his career to be huge and in the spotlight, we not only made rules, but we also put restrictions on our relationship." She took a deep breath and a long drink, finishing her second beer.

"We established that we could each still see other people, but keep it on the sly. I would be his date to all major events, like charities and social events or anything else having to do with his career, and vice versa. If I were to attend anything that required a date, he was mine. It wasn't like we were faking a relationship because we were really together. We were a couple, just not an exclusive one.

"The restrictions we set up were pretty simple, but covered a lot of ground. If we wanted to sleep with someone else the only rules were that they couldn't be a celebrity or someone our families knew. We also had to make sure that we had deniability, should we be caught. We set it up this way so that if we were caught, it wouldn't cause a huge public scandal and would be dealt with internally. In a fucked up sort of way, we gave ourselves permission to go fishing off the company pier. I personally never did anything, but Emmett used it as his personal playground."

She looked up from the floor and her eyes met mine.

"After a while," she continued, "it got old. I hated knowing that I was Ms. Dependable and even though he was very discreet about all of his affairs, it hurt like hell when I called him and knew the real reason he wouldn't pick up. So, to combat this, I started partaking in my end of our arrangement. When Emmett found out, he was not thrilled. He didn't like it, but I told him if he wanted to keep screwing the woman who helped negotiate his contract, then he would deal with me being with other men..."

She paused to let the information sink in. Then, it suddenly hit me. Tanya.

"Do you mean to tell me your boyfriend was fucking my sister while he was with you?" I asked.

Bella just nodded in response. I was beyond furious; there were no words to describe the rage I was feeling. I knew a few years ago she was seeing someone important that she represented, but for some reason she would never tell me why. Now I knew. "That's how Tanya knew Emmett would be at the premiere. She had mentioned earlier in the day how she had to go down to Oakland for a meeting…" I trailed off.

"She went down to negotiate Emmett's contract with the Raiders to secure a spot on the staff," she confirmed.

"After all this, he still keeps her on retainer?" I asked incredulously.

"She's good at what she does, you can't fault her for that," Bella said with a shrug.

"Bella, you have to know you are so much better than that. Why did you stay?"

"Like I said, Edward, I wasn't innocent in all this. Once I decided that I was going to be a willing participant in his game, Emmett decided to change the rules." A flash of bitterness crossed her face.

"We were in bed one night and watched an old episode of Friends – it was the episode where they made their infamous lists. You know, the list of famous people they were allowed to sleep with and get away with it."

I knew exactly what she was talking about. I'd been told by many women that I was on their list.

"So we, and by that I really mean he, decided that we needed to narrow it down. Our lists would have the people we mutually agreed upon, as well as a celebrity. Emmett had your sister Irina, who was his publicist at the time, as well as Kate Garrett, Carmen Garcia and Rosalie Hale. Rose was clearly his celebrity choice. Kate is a journalist and Carmen is a friend of his mother's – a Mrs. Robinson if you will. The lists never changed, and we became comfortable in our routines. I knew he would never actually go after Carmen, so I threw him a freebie as well." She smiled to herself.

"Who was on your list?" I was dying of curiosity.

She took a deep breath. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Absolutely."

"I had Jacob, Tyler Crowley, Alec Connors, Eleazar Santos, and then my celebrity pick. I knew Jacob from growing up and knew nothing would ever happen with him. Not to say that we didn't try," she said with a chuckle. "Jacob was my freebie."

I was confused. "If Jacob was your freebie, why do you say that you tried? And isn't he considered a celebrity?"

"I didn't know Jake would be unresponsive to me at the time, it just worked out that way," she laughed. "I guess you could call him a celebrity. He certainly considers himself a God among men."

"I'm sorry Bella, but I'm confused. He was your date yesterday. I saw the way he was touching you, and it wasn't in a friendly manner." I was trying to sort all this in my mind.

"I said I didn't know it at the time, Edward. I wish I could say more, but it's not my story to tell. Let's just say we both have a thing for athletes and just leave it at that, okay?" She winked at me.

"Oh." Oh! I heard Bella laugh as she saw me come to the realization. "I promise I won't say anything."

"Good, thank you. Emmett doesn't even know and I would like to keep it that way."

"So how did everyone else fit into your life?" I'm not sure I wanted to know. If they were all people that Bella saw regularly, I wasn't sure I could keep my jealousy in check.

"Tyler is one of my minions. We went to school together and I helped him get his start at Swan Media Group. Alec is one of the authors I signed a few years ago, and you know who Eleazar is, right?"

"Of course." Everyone knew that Eleazar Santos was the head of one of the biggest movie studios in the world. "How do you know him?"

"We met at a party a few years ago when Charlie was working on a deal and Santos was trying to personally ensure the papers that were owned by SMG would only have favorable things to say. Pathetic if you ask me, but we hit it off and still keep in touch." She took a sip of her drink. I could feel the bile start to rise in my gut. This was all too much information.

"So, was this a game to you guys?" I asked. "I can't imagine how on earth you could do this to each other."

"No, it wasn't a game! I hated it, but the fact of the matter was, Emmett was my boyfriend and if I wanted to keep him, then I had to be willing to put up with his wild ways. If that meant changing my behaviors and shelving what I thought was right, then so be it. I did it, but I'm not proud of it."

It was clear she was starting to get upset. Her eyes started to take on a glassy look. It was the same look Tanya would get when she was upset. She was about to start crying.

"It all stopped when Emmett proposed," she said. "Through the year that we had this agreement, we grew on each other. We fell in love – or at least what I thought was love. After we were engaged, we both agreed to stop the sleeping around and be dedicated fully to each other."

"So, then what happened?"

"You." My heart stopped beating for a moment.

"Me?" I struggled to get a simple word out. My throat started to constrict and cutting off all necessary oxygen

"Yes, you," she said with a giggle. She was clearly buzzed. "The night before I left for L.A., we watched that same episode of Friends. We had been engaged for a while and I had honestly forgotten all about the list until we saw the rerun. We talked about our lists again, and Emmett told me that if I ran into my celebrity, I had his permission to have one last fling, as would he."

"Who was your celebrity?" I was pretty sure I already knew the answer, but I had to hear it from her. Meanwhile, I was silently praying she wouldn't say it was me.

"I think you know."

"So, that meeting at The Ivy, what was that all about? Did you know I would be at the Four Seasons? Did you plan all that?" My voice was getting louder. I was hoping it would somehow mask the dread I was feeling.

Her tone got louder, too. "What? No! How would I know about that? Jasper invited me to The Ivy, remember? Not you."

"So, what then? You were going to try and fuck me as a laugh?" I was more than hurt. The familiar pang of insecurity and sadness crept back into my chest.

"No, I wasn't going to fuck you as a laugh. I only agreed to meet you guys because I was curious and bored. I never actually thought that I'd run into you in L.A. I was there for a dress fitting for my wedding!"

"So, what would have happened if the papps hadn't shown up, huh? What if Emmett hadn't called you? Then what?" I slammed my bottle on the coffee table.

"I don't know! I don't know what I was thinking. All I know is when I got back to New York; all I could think about was you." Her voice had a slight pleading tone to it.

"That's bullshit and you know it. You had my email, my phone number and you had Alice who clearly could have put you in touch with Jasper," I snapped at her. "What is this? What do you plan on doing now? Why are you telling me all of this?"

"The fact that I'm here and telling you everything, even though you're rejecting me, should make it pretty damn clear what I'm doing. I'm coming clean because I care about you, Edward. I know the mindset Emmett is in right now, and trust me when I say he's a vindictive bastard. I told him I was going to tell you everything because if I didn't, he would." She suddenly began sobbing. I didn't care and she didn't have the right to be upset.

"So if you guys didn't argue this morning, then you wouldn't have told me?" I asked, but didn't wait for her to answer. "That's just great. This town is full of liars, cheats, and manipulators. You didn't need to move out here too, although I'm sure you could teach them a thing or two."

"Are you going to let me finish talking or are you going to keep jumping to conclusions?" she asked as she tried to choke back her tears.

"So, let me get this straight. You had a boyfriend who wanted to cheat on you, you gave him permission, and after a while you started to cheat on him too. Then you put stronger restrictions on your cheating, and then you got engaged and you came out to L.A. You happen to see me and decide that you're going to whore it up one last time before you marry someone you don't really love. Right?"

She was leaning forward, her face hidden in her hands. I wanted to feel sympathy for her, but I couldn't. I wasn't involved in their dealings and yet I still felt dirty. Any feelings that I had for Bella were now gone, or at least completely buried underneath my anger. I needed to process this and I sure as hell couldn't do it while she was still here.

"I think you need to leave," I said in the coldest tone I could manage.

"What? You don't want me to–"

"No. I don't want you," I cut her off.

"Okay, then." She let out a small sob but stood up and walked toward the entryway to pick up her keys of the side table.

I didn't watch her leave – I couldn't. Instead, I stood up and picked up the glass bottles and headed to the kitchen as I heard the front door open and slam shut. I felt a burning sensation in my chest; it was one that I hadn't felt in a very long time. The thoughts and emotions that ran through my mind were quickly tiring me out. I had only consumed a small amount of alcohol, but that, combined with the news that Bella had given me tonight was enough to send me over the edge.

For the first time in a long time, I allowed myself to truly feel emotions without holding back. I felt anger, sadness, vulnerability, and humiliation. The feeling of being someone's plaything was humiliating. I felt like a joke.

I went to my wet bar and poured a double shot of whiskey and threw it back. I poured double and tossed that one back. I repeated my actions until my lips felt numb, and then I slowly made my way to my bed and passed out.

I woke up an hour later to a loud pounding on my door. I begrudgingly got out of bed and opened the door a crack to see a very pissed off Jasper.

"What the hell did you do to her?" Jasper asked as he barged his way into my room. He pushed the door open hard enough that I was knocked back into the wall.

"What the hell are you talking about – what I did to her?" I rubbed my hands over my face trying to wake up.

Jasper eyed me up and down and asked, "Are you drunk?"

"A little. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be off fucking Alice right now?" I wanted him to leave.

"I could be if she wasn't consoling her best friend who is currently berating herself. What the fuck happened here?"

"She told me everything about the situation regarding her and Emmett. She explained how I was part of some sick game or joke that they had, and after hearing that, I told her to leave." I was about to ask him to get out again when something he said in his earlier question struck me. "Wait, what do you mean she's berating herself?"

"While you guys were here talking, Alice told me everything, and I understand it isn't pretty, but did Bella tell you about what happened before she met Alice and Emmett?" I shook my head, causing my headache to increase. "Bella came back and starting calling herself a whore, saying that she was a moron for moving to the west coast. Dude, the girl's a fucking wreck. What did you say to her?"

"Just like I told you, she told me her story and then I told her I thought she should leave." I was confused now. "She didn't tell me anything except that she didn't have a lot of experience with other guys. She said she was being set to take over Charlie Swan's place with SMG. That's it. It's clear that you know something I don't." The alcohol was making me queasy and I was getting impatient.

"It's not my story to tell but I have a feeling that if I don't tell you, nobody will."

"Just say it. I really don't have the patience right now." I flung myself onto the bed.

"I'm not going to go into specifics and remember, this is just what I heard from Alice." I motioned my hand for him to continue. "Apparently Renee, her mother, can be a very persuasive woman as can Maria, Emmett's mother. When Bella was in high school, she went to one of those bitchy prep schools, like from the movie 'Cruel Intentions'. Anyway, Bella was ostracized for being the nerd or loser or whatever. She rarely had any friends and with the exception of a few guys and Jacob Black – nobody talked to her. I guess she and Black grew up together or something. Anyway, there was one boy, a Mike Newton, who expressed an interest in her.

She started dating Newton only to find out that it was all a cruel joke and he had been dating another girl the entire time. Bella was heartbroken, and after that it was her and Jacob. He became very protective of her in a big brother sort of way and she was deemed off-limits to the rest of the school population.

She became very dependent on Black and at first her parents and the Black family were thrilled. They thought that this was a perfect match. I guess they tried at being more than friends, but nothing ever came of it. Nobody knows why." I couldn't help but laugh at his statement. I knew why, but as much as she didn't deserve it, I kept my mouth shut. Jasper gave me a funny look and kept talking.

After she graduated, she moved to study abroad for a while. She met a few guys, but for some reason or another, nothing ever worked out. She came back and started working in a high-end bookstore. That's when she met Alice and Emmett."

She told me about how they all met and good for them," I said bitterly. "Why are you telling me this? So what if Bella didn't have any friends? Boo-fucking-hoo, dude. What the hell does this have to do with their arrangement?"

"It has everything to do with it! Don't you get it, asshole? Someone like Bella who has been raked over the coals by the male species gets the attention of someone like McCarty. That's a big deal to her. She never thought she was good enough, but Emmett helped her come out of her shell and become the person she is now."

"A deceiving wanna-be star-fucker?"

"I can't believe you just said that." Jasper looked at me with wide eyes.

"Finish what you were saying and get the hell out."

"You really don't deserve to hear the rest of it, but I'm going to tell you simply because once you hear the end, you're going to feel like an absolute piece of shit. With your attitude right now, you deserve it."

"Whatever."

"I'll make this quick since you are clearly busy. After Bella met Emmett, she became a completely different person. It devastated Bella to learn that Emmett wanted to still see other people, but continue to put up the façade that they were a happy committed couple. Bella wanted out, but Renee and Maria both convinced her to stay, saying that it was what was best for her. Bella believed them and chose to stay, thinking that Emmett was her last chance to meet a guy who could deal with her. She only started sleeping around like Emmett was because she was trying to keep him happy."

"She said she didn't want to be with other people…"

"And she didn't, but she was convinced it would at least make her forget about the fact that even her families were telling her that she couldn't keep Emmett happy. Renee kept talking about grandbabies and Maria was enamored by the social power couple they would become. Bella felt pressure to stay to make everyone else happy. She even got herself engaged to the asshole because she loved him on some fucked-up level. Then a few months ago, things suddenly changed. She started becoming her own person and wasn't afraid of Maria and Renee. She finally stood up to them and told them that her happiness was going to take precedence. She had a chance to be truly happy in her life and she was taking it. She wouldn't put up with their pressure and manipulating ways anymore."

"So what changed?"

"For some reason she started to get herself worked up over you."

"Me?" He had my attention now.

"Yes you," he said with a sigh and paced the floor. "It was a complete coincidence that we met her at the Four Seasons. I know you think it's fucked up that she met with us for lunch that day at and didn't tell us about Emmett, but according to Alice, she felt something for you the moment she saw you. Just like you felt something when you saw her, except she didn't go into the near hermetic-like state that you did. Instead, she went back home and manned up to her feelings, breaking things off with Emmett."

"I asked her if their relationship ended because of me and she said no." Bella lied to me – it was a believable concept.

"You weren't the main reason, but you were a large part of it. Bella realized that there were other men out there who made her feel attractive and worthy of something other than just second best. When she realized all this, she finally had the strength to break up with Emmett."

"She has a new job?"

Jasper laughed. "Did you even listen to anything she said? She got a promotion from Charlie Swan. She wasn't supposed to completely move out here, but she took a leap of faith."

"How the hell was I supposed to know that?" I was sitting up now; he had my attention.

"It's pretty fucking obvious. Think about it for a second. You guys meet and have some weird voodoo connection. She suddenly leaves, breaks up an almost six-year relationship and then immediately moves out here. She may not have consciously known what she was doing, but it was pretty clear to Alice and me."

"So, what happens now?"

"Now, I don't know. She came back to her place in tears and from what I could understand, she's really upset. All she could say was that she told you everything and you rejected her. You told her that you didn't want her anymore. To her, it was the ultimate blow. She had been led to believe that she wasn't enough. Last night, you told her you would wait for her to come around and now you're telling her you don't want her."

"How was I supposed to know about her past history? Last night she told me she didn't know who she was without having a guy around or what it was like to just be herself."

"Exactly. Now that Emmett has brought her out of her shyness and she knows how to be herself, she wanted to figure it out on her own. You saying that you would wait for her to figure out her issues was a blessing, and then you just took it away."

"That's not fair, Jazz. I had no idea how she was manipulated. How am I supposed to feel when she comes and lays all this crap on me about her and Emmett and their deals and lists? It's all I had to go on, and if I'm saying that I don't want her, it's because she-"

"She what?" Jasper asked, cutting me off. "She may have taken her time in telling you everything, but she did end up telling you all of it. Alice said she heard Bella tell Emmett she was going to tell you everything before the fight we heard."

"Again, how was I supposed to know that?"

Jasper sighed and said, "I guess you weren't. Look, man, I'm sorry you didn't get all the details beforehand. But now do you understand why she was so hesitant to tell you?"

"Yeah, I get it now." Even though I didn't know a lot of the things about Bella's past, Jasper was right; if I had let Bella finish explaining everything, she might have told me all this. Instead, I shut her down and kicked her out of my house, telling her I didn't want her anymore. It wasn't completely my fault, but that didn't stop the fact I still felt like an asshole.

I got off the bed and moved toward the door. 'Where do you think you're going?" Jasper asked.

"I'm going to go talk to her." I looked at him as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"She won't be there," he called after me.

I stopped in my tracks and spun around. "What do you mean she won't be there? She just left a couple of hours ago," I was confused.

"No she didn't. She came back to her place over five hours ago. I was letting you sleep off your drunken stupor. She came back and talked to Alice and me and I left to come back here. Alice called a while ago to say that Bella just took a bag and the SMG plane, but didn't say where she was going."

I felt my stomach drop. She left L.A. again; she left me again. I refused to accept that the next time we would talk would be on her terms. This time I would go to her and I would make her listen to me.

"Well, give me Alice's number. There has to be a way to find her. Alice is her personal assistant and best friend. Surely she'll know." It all sounded logical to me.

"You're right, Alice would know, but like you said, Alice is her best friend, but why on earth would she tell you anything?" he asked with a chuckle. "Alice is infamous for having shit-lists, and right now, sir, you are on the top of hers."

"Well don't you think that Alice will tell you something?"

"Hell no she won't! They are best friends and right now whatever Bella wants or needs is going take priority over whatever Alice and I have going on. If you're number one right now, who do you think is second on her list?" he cocked an eyebrow at me.


	10. It's Just a Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 10: It's Just a Meeting
> 
> AN: I am very sorry for this being so late! Here it is, I hope you all like it!
> 
> I can't believe how amazing you guys are! We reached over 100 reviews which is beyond stellar. I also have to give RoseArcadia major thanks for her blinkie making skills. Not only is it fantastic but its adorable too! I love it, thank you again so much Rose, I really appreciate it!
> 
> The response to the last chapter was amazing and I am beyond thrilled. This is the follow up chapter, half will be Bella and half will be Edward. We'll start with Edward now that he is determined to find her and then we'll find out where Bella went. Oh, you'll also get to meet a few more people from "the list".
> 
> As usual Stephanie Meyer owns all things Twilight, The Rembrandts own "I'll Be There For You", and the plot and story is mine…and kids…stealing ain't cool.

Previously…

"Well don't you think that Alice will tell you something?"

"Hell no she won't! They're best friends and right now whatever Bella wants or needs is going take priority over whatever Alice and I have going on. If you're number one right now, who do you think is second on her list?" he cocked an eyebrow at me.

Edward Masen

"Where the hell is she?" I yelled in frustration to no one in particular and threw my phone on the couch. I had been pacing for the past hour and had exhausted almost all of my connections. Alice was refusing to tell Jasper or me anything about Bella's location. All she would say is that Bella was fine and to leave her alone. I was tempted to ask Emmett, but I was afraid of what I might do if I actually saw the fucker. I was able to get Jacob Black's phone number from Jasper, but he wasn't answering his phone. Apparently Jasper and Jacob had hit it off after the premiere and were quick friends.

Bella had been gone for five days now. I was having flashbacks to the time when she had taken off for New York, but this time it was different. I had deliberately pushed her away. I kept reminding myself that I would see her in Vancouver in a week; I didn't want to wait until then. I wanted to clear this up with her now. I wanted to tell her how sorry I was, that I overreacted. I realized now how much courage it had taken for her to tell me about her sick relationship with Emmett. I had done the one thing she had feared the most, even if I didn't know it at the time. I had rejected her. I implied she was a whore.

She had changed who she was and what she believed was the right thing for someone she didn't even love. I actually hurt for her. I was mad at myself for the way I treated for her, I was furious about the way Emmett treated her, and I was angry at her parents for not giving a shit about her feelings. Nobody had put Bella first; instead, they all focused on their own selfish needs.

I remembered the names on her list and decided against trying to find them. Realistically, what would I say to Eleazar Santos? I was Edward Masen and I was trying to find one of his potential fuck buddies? That would go over real well. The other people on her list were people I had never heard of.

I heard my phone chime and checked to see who was calling. It was Tanya again. I had been ignoring her since the day Bella had come over. I didn't feel bad for avoiding her, but I wasn't sure I wanted to talk to her. I had so many questions to ask her, but I wasn't ready. Did she know about Bella when Emmett's agreement? Was she still sleeping with him? How many times were they together? How long have they been together? Clearly she was still working with Emmett, because she was down in Oakland several days ago for his negotiations with the Raiders. The whole thought that my sister could be involved with someone who was already in a relationship made me sick.

Liz and I didn't find out about Tanya until she was eleven years old. I was fourteen. Edward Senior, my father, had been having an affair with Tanya's mom, Lauren, for two years before Tanya was conceived. When Ed tried to break it off with Lauren, Lauren told Liz everything. She informed my mother that she had been sleeping with Ed for the past thirteen years.

All hell broke loose. Ed and Liz separated for a while and they insisted that Tanya live with us and get to know her family. Lauren didn't want Tanya around anyway; she said Tanya was a constant reminder of her failed relationship and she should be with her father. It was an entirely fucked up idea that sounded like a made-for-TV-movie on the Lifetime channel. For Tanya to be with someone who was already in a relationship was upsetting to me. I surely thought that after everything we had been through as a family, she would know better than that.

No one told you life was gonna be this way

*clap*clap*clap*clap*

Your job's a joke, you're broke, your love life's DOA

It's like you're always stuck in second gear

When it hasn't been your day, your week, your month, or even your year

but..

I'll be there for you

I heard my phone again playing the stupid fucking theme song from Friends. Ever since Jasper found out all the details about the show and the list, he thought it was pretty damn funny to set it as my alert whenever he would call or text me. He'd somehow locked it and I can't figure out how to change it back; technology hates me and the feeling is mutual.

I glanced over at the phone on my couch and saw that it was actually a text message. All it said was to check my email. I did as instructed and found that I had several new emails.

One was my flight itinerary to Vancouver, one was from Tanya wanting to know what was going on with me, and the third was Jasper with a links to a couple of gossip sites; the message he had enclosed with the third email simply said 'found her'.

I clicked on the links which led me to a gossip blog where I saw Bella. Based on her surroundings it looked like she was in New York. The date on the photos said they were taken Sunday, the day after I made her leave my house. She looked terrible. The pictures showed her having lunch with a tall guy with dark brown curly hair. In the pictures his hand was on her shoulder, and then they were holding hands across the table; the last picture showed her head resting on his shoulder.

I closed the page and clicked on the next link. This time it showed Bella still in what looked like New York, but in these pictures she looked different. She looked happy. She wore a huge smile and looked fucking gorgeous. The caption under the pictures said that they were taken yesterday afternoon. She was laughing with the same guy from the previous photos. The blogger, who posted the photos said that the man in the picture was named Tyler Crowley and that several sources have confirmed that Tyler and Bella were very close. I suddenly felt like the wind had been knocked out of me.

I knew the name; that was one of the guys Bella had said was on her list. Why was she spending time with him? It was taking everything I had to keep from getting on a plane and flying to New York and make her talk to me. I kept chanting "Canada" to myself as my mantra. A week, that's all. Just a week. I could do this. In a week I could explain it all and apologize for making her feel like something that she isn't. As much as it killed me to think about it, the Tyler guy seemed to make her happy and I sure as hell didn't want to make her unhappy. I decided I would keep my angsty ass in California until I was needed elsewhere.

I glanced at the clock on the bottom of my computer screen and realized that I was going to be late for a meeting with Carlisle, a writer, and his representation. The writer was a guy who had his book turned into a screenplay. I had already read the book several times because it was fucking fantastic.

Now that the screenplay had been written and the author, Felix Volturi, had asked to meet with me to see if I would be perfect for the main character. I had done a bit of work in the teen-drama category and this was the chance I needed. I needed to get this job otherwise I was sure I would be forever typecast as a prepubescent wet dream.

Normally Jasper would have come to the meeting as well, but since he had already read the script and thought I would be perfect, he actually trusted Carlisle with this. It didn't help that Alice had forgiven him for being associated with me; he was no longer on her shit list. He had spent the last three days in her bed trying to make it up to her.

I quickly jumped in the shower and changed into my semi-professional appearance. I threw on a pair of dark jeans and white button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. I tried to tame my hair but eventually just gave up. The last thing I wanted was for this guy to think that I didn't take his writing seriously. After grabbing my sunglasses, phone and keys I made my way down to The Palm in West Hollywood.

After fighting L.A. traffic for thirty minutes, I barely made it in time. I immediately spotted Carlisle with a guy with dark blond hair and blue eyes. If the guy had lighter-colored hair he could be Carlisle's brother. Both men saw I had arrived and stood up to greet me.

"Edward, this is Alec Connors. Alec, as I'm sure you know, this is Edward Masen."

Carlisle introduced us as we shook hands and I felt the air socked out of me for the second time in an hour. Alec Connors knew Bella, intimately for all I knew, and I wanted to kill him.

"It's nice to meet you." I paused. "I thought we were meeting with Felix Volturi?" I was confused.

"I'm Felix Volturi," Alec said. "Felix is my penname. My publishers thought that Alec Connors sounded a bit too boring for my writing," he shrugged with a laugh.

"Okay, that makes sense," I said as I shifted my glance towards Carlisle. "I thought someone else was coming too?"

"Yeah, my representative," Alec rolled his eyes. "Apparently there's this movie that's labeled one of their top priorities so they want to make sure they get all the i's dotted and t's crossed. He was supposed to be flying in from New York, but there were some personal issues that came up. Instead they're sending his boss. She's a real ball-buster; thank god I know her personally otherwise she'd scare the living hell out of me."

"So where is she?" Carlisle's tone had edge to it. If there was one thing the man despised above all other things in business, it was lateness.

"Her flight was delayed, but she called me a little while ago to say she was on her way. She should be here soon," Alec said.

"Okay, well can we at least get something to drink?" I asked as our waiter approached us.

"Sounds good," agreed Carlisle.

Alec briefly glanced up and caught sight of someone through the window. "She just pulled up. You guys will get a kick out of her; just don't be fooled by the pretty face." His warning fell on deaf ears. There was only one woman I was concerned about and I currently had no fucking clue where she was. No, I knew she was in New York and was ignoring me.

At least until Alec stood up and called out her name.

"Bella! Glad you could finally make it."

Carlisle leaned over and whispered, "Isn't that the girl from the-"

"Yup," I answered.

Bella Swan

The past five days had been a huge roller coaster of emotions for me. Right after Edward told me to leave his house I had received a phone call from Charlie telling me he needed me in New York first thing on Monday. My old department was going through a restructure and since I used to be part of it, he wanted my opinion on who should stay and go. I asked him to have the company plane ready to go in a few hours. There was no way I would be able to stay in L.A., and I thought it would do me some good to get out of the city for a little while.

When I had arrived home, I saw Jasper and Alice snuggled up on the couch. I briefly told Alice I had to leave and ran upstairs to pack a couple of bags. I talked to Jasper for a little while after I came back down with my luggage.

After Jasper left, I broke down and told Alice everything that happened at Edward's. I told her how I had disclosed all the details and how he was on my list. I told her I had tried to explain how things were different with him and he had refused to listen. To say Alice was furious would be an understatement. The munchkin almost never swore, but she could put a sailor to shame that day. She said he would be at the top of her shit list for as long as necessary and Jasper was second on the list just for being associated with Edward.

I flew out to New York that afternoon. Thankfully Alice had called Tyler and arranged for him to be the one to pick me up. We spent the entire weekend catching up. I met his very pregnant fiancée Heidi, briefly. Sadly she had to work most of the weekend so she wasn't able to get out with us too much.

I had only been in New York a couple of days when I noticed Tyler and I were being followed by photographers. I was past the point of caring, and thanks to the company of Tyler and his sharp wit, I never found myself thinking about Edward until I was on my way back home. Then, a few days before Tyler and I were to fly out to L.A., Heidi went into labor. He had a meeting with Alec scheduled and called me franticly and profusely apologized, asking me to go to in his place. We were very good friends and respected each other professionally; it would only be natural for him to do the same for me.

"Bella! Glad you could finally make it." Alec walked across the restaurant to greet me. Several people had turned and looked, but I only looked ahead. Unfortunately, when I looked ahead, I saw the bronze-colored hair of the person I detested more than anything at this point. Did Edward have to be everywhere I went? Seriously though, why the fuck was he here? This was supposed to be between Alec, some actor's agent, the actor and….oh dammit!

"Alec, lovely to see you again," I said as I gave him a faux-kiss on the cheek. I always thought the air kisses were ridiculous until I started socializing. Between Maria and Renee, I'm still surprised I didn't get faux-mono.

"So you've picked Edward Masen to be your lead?" I asked him, eyeing Edward as we approached the table. In all fairness, Edward would be an amazing person to cast in his book-to-movie adaptation. I was pretty much sold on the idea, but I wasn't about to let them know that.

"Bella, you've know me for how long? Don't you trust my judgment on this?"

"We go back a long time Alec, I trust you," I assured him.

"Let's give 'em hell, Swan." He squeezed my hand and quickly let go.

"Gentlemen, I apologize for being late. I'm Bella Swan. I'll be filling in for Tyler," I said with a smile on my face as I approached the table. The small pain that I felt in my chest when I first spotted Edward had quickly manifested itself into full-on rage.

"I'm Carlisle Cullen, and this is Edward Masen." Carlisle motioned towards Edward.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Carlisle, I've heard so much about you." I winked at him as I shook his hand and a smug look crawled onto his face. "Edward, pleasure to see you again, as always," I gave his hand a quick but firm grasp.

"You two know each other?" Alec asked, his eyes darting between Edward and me.

"We had lunch a few months back, not a big deal." I waved my hand. "Have you all had a chance to order?" I was hoping they would say no. If I was going to be at a table with Edward for any amount of time I had a feeling copious amounts of alcohol were going to be necessary.

"We were just about to when Alec spotted you," Carlisle said. I could tell he was annoyed with my being late. I couldn't exactly help it if JFK had a freak torrential downpour and all runways were shut down until the rain stopped. He could shove his annoyances up his ass for all I cared.

"Ah I see. Well, shall we order first or talk business first?" I asked.

"Let's order," Alec said. I nodded and perused the menu. "Oh Bella, I forgot to ask how Tyler was doing."

"When I last saw him, he was exhausted and sleeping. I'm sure you remember how it was." We both laughed. When Alec's daughter was born he'd been so stressed about making sure the baby was okay, he fell asleep almost instantly anytime he sat down. I saw Edward grimace out of the corner of my eye and I realized what I said and how it could be taken. I couldn't find it in myself enough to care. He already thought I was a whore; I wasn't going to attempt to change his mind.

"Why is it that you're here exactly, Ms. Swan?" Carlisle asked with a bit of condescension in his voice. I had been expecting this from him. From what I had heard, Carlisle didn't like people questioning the abilities of the talent he represented. My presence at the lunch today was not so much that I didn't trust Alec's decision-making skills, but rather Carlisle's choice in clientele. In short, I didn't trust the talent and whomever Alec chose to play the lead in his book had to get the final nod by me.

Normally we didn't operate under these circumstances and these decisions were up to the casting directors or even the heads of the studios. However, Swan Media Group had been moving more and more into the film industry over the past few years, and my judgment, as well as approval from Tyler, had started to take notice.

In the past, whenever Tyler or I would frown upon a decision, we would turn out to be correct. The actor or actress always turned out to be a flake it would would end up being extra work on the publicity end to cover screw-ups and bad rumors. When we would give our input that a casting call was a good decision the film ended up being a success and create less cover-up work for me. People in Hollywood were taking notice that our advice was solid, and we were damn good at what we did. However, Carlisle didn't like the idea of his prime cash cow being challenged.

I folded my hands in my lap and sat back in my chair. "I'm here because my presence was requested by my client. It is my job to make sure the full potential of Alec's book is reached and that is a position I do not take lightly. I am also here because at this point in the game, unless your client is deemed worthy, by me, then he won't have a new project. That is why I am here, Carlisle. Why are you here?"

"I'm here to make sure that my client's full potential is realized and that he is given the role he wants." The cockiness that I had heard about Carlisle was now present and accounted for.

"Again, surely Mr. Masen can represent himself; he is the one who wants the role, not you. I'm sure he's fully capable of telling people what he does and doesn't want," I shot back.

"Like I said," Alec said with a nervous laugh, "she'll scare the hell out of you."

I glanced to my left to see Edward looking rather pale. I occurred to me then that Edward had only seen me in casual or fairly informal situations. He had never seen me conduct business. I cocked an eyebrow at Alec and smiled at him, letting him know there were no hard feelings for whatever it was he said about me before I arrived.

The waiter approached the table with a bit of hesitancy. I could understand his position. I had just snapped at one of the most powerful agents in Hollywood, one of the biggest stars was looking pale, and a very popular author looked in dire need of a drink, while I was all smiles. We all ordered our drinks, and when I placed the order for my gin and tonic, I could tell Carlisle was about to make a comment, but quickly shut his mouth.

After the waiter left, we sat in a bit of silence until Alec spoke up and asked Edward what he thought of the book. I thought it was pretty damn funny that Carlisle was the only one who hadn't read Alec's work. If Carlisle had been representing me, I would have been embarrassed, especially if he was at the meeting stating he was looking out for his client. What if Alec had written an awful book and an even more awful screenplay?

The rest of the lunch meeting went fairly well with only a few tense moments when Edward would briefly try to touch me or try to say something in my ear. I would just brush him off or lean away from his touches. About halfway through lunch, he stopped trying altogether.

After I had settled the bill, we all stood up and exchanged brief but short pleasantries.

"Edward, I think you could do great things with the character Alec has created. As long as you're approved by everyone else, you have my go-ahead. Congratulations."

I gave him a small smile and shook his hand. Carlisle also showed a look of relief and shook my hand. Part of me wanted to tell him he had nothing to worry about, but after being such an arrogant asshole I figured it wouldn't hurt to make him sweat it out a little bit.

"Shall we?" Alec offered his arm out to me. I smiled at his politeness and linked arms with him.

"What's up with you and Masen?" he asked as we stood by the valet stand.

"That obvious, huh?" I peered at him over my sunglasses.

"The sexual tension was pretty heavy in there Bells," he cast me a knowing glance.

"There was tension, but I highly doubt it was sexual," I said with a laugh. "Trust me when I say I have firsthand knowledge that your new leading man wants nothing to do with me."

"From where I was sitting, it didn't look that way. I know you wanted to beat Carlisle into submission with the bread basket, and I know you and I don't have anything anymore, so there was only one other person left," he mused. "If that guy said he doesn't want you, then he's a shitty actor and you need to change your mind about him."

"Are you questioning my judgment now, Alec?" I laughed. I could suddenly feel a burst of cool on my back from the air conditioning coming from the restaurant. The coolness was suddenly replaced with a feeling of soothing calm that I had only ever felt from Edward's presence.

"Do you want to come by and check out the new place?" I asked. "I know Alice would love to see you."

"Alice is out here too?" Alec nodded in response as I continued, "I would love to see her, and it has been a while."

Just then, the valet pulled around with Alec's Mercedes.

Edward Masen

Walking out of The Palm, Carlisle and I were silent. I was embarrassed that he hadn't read Alec's book, yet he assured me I was perfect for the role. I was even more furious at him for attempting to demean Bella by questioning her role in the meeting. The way she had come back at him was a little scary. I had never seen Bella in a professional setting before; she was intimidating, strong, smart and sexy as hell.

It was a cold slap in the face the way she had breezed through our introduction. I'm still not sure if the comment she had made about 'leaving Tyler sleeping' when she last saw him was supposed to have gotten to me, but it had. This was quickly turning out to be one of the worst days I'd had in a very long time. If it wasn't intentional, she hadn't tried to correct herself, and I find it hard to believe she would have given off the impression that she had slept around. The idea of Bella being with anyone made me want to vomit the thirty-seven dollar steak I choked down.

Through the first half of lunch, I tried to talk to Bella while Alec and Carlisle discussed whatever the hell they found so interesting. She wouldn't have anything to do with me. I tried to ask her if I could talk to her later or we could meet up, but she ignored me or would lean away. She was hurt, and it was pretty evident by the way she purposely avoided me.

Carlisle and I were waiting by the valet stand when I heard Bella ask if Alec wanted to see Alice and her new house. I didn't like the idea of Alec being alone with Bella anywhere, let alone in her house. A possessiveness that I had never felt before I met Bella began to rise.

I walked over to them. "I'm sorry, Alec. May I just borrow Bella for a moment?" I asked and without waiting for an answer, I lightly grabbed her arm and pulled her away from Alec's car.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she half-whispered and half-yelled.

"I've been trying to find you for the past five days and you come strolling in like it's no big deal?" I asked through clenched teeth.

"Why have you been trying to find me? You don't want me. I believe those were your exact words before you asked me to leave your home." The hurt was evident in her eyes.

"I was trying to find you because I was concerned. I have been trying to locate you so that I could apologize for what I said. Alice wouldn't tell Jasper or me anything about where you were. I saw that you were in New York a couple of hours ago, and it took everything I had not to get on a plane to get you to talk to me."

"Well you're talking to me now, aren't you? Is this what you call an apology?" she shook her head and turned to walk away.

"No, this is an apology," I said a little too loudly as I reached for her wrist and spun her around to face me.

"Edward what the-"

Before she could finish her sentence, I kissed her, not caring who could see. I could feel her body stiffen underneath. After a moment, I could feel her start to relax and she began to kiss me back as I pulled her body closer to mine. I heard a throat clear behind me, making me very aware of where we were and what we had just done. I turned around to see a very shocked Carlisle and a very smug-looking Alec mouthing 'I told you so' to Bella.

"I'll call you early next week, Bells."

Alec gave a short wave before he hopped in his car and drove off. To my left, I could see photographers making their way to the valet stand. Thankfully, it was just then that the valet pulled my car around.

"Coming?" I asked, motioning towards my car.

"A Volvo, Edward? Really? My accountant drives a Volvo." She eyed the car as she approached it; she was very aware of the paparazzi that were starting to multiply.

"I'm sure he does. Now are you getting in?" I was getting impatient.

"Oh fine," she huffed and climbed in the passenger seat.

Once we were on our way I realized I had no idea where I was going. Should I take her back to my house or would that be too raw for her? Should I take her back to her place or would Alice and Jasper be there? I was trying to figure out what I was going to do when she finally spoke.

"Did you really mean what you said about trying to find me?" Her voice was low.

"Yes, I called everyone who might know where you were, except. I was concerned that I would never get to see you again. I was afraid you had moved back to New York," I confessed.

She snorted, "You think pretty highly of yourself don't you?" I didn't know how to answer. She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, "I left because right after you kicked me out," I winced at her terminology, "I received a phone call from Charlie asking me to come to the offices for a few days. I may have wanted to get away for a while, but I had always planned on coming back. I didn't think I would be back so soon, but with Tyler, I felt I owed it to him to come on his behalf today." Her tone was wistful as if she was longing to be back in Manhattan.

"Ah yes, the sleeping Tyler," I sarcastically mused.

"Watch it, Masen. You have no idea what you're talking about," she warned me.

"Can you at least imagine how weirded out I was today? A few days ago, you tell me about this list that you have and I'm on it, right? Then today, before I leave for our meeting, I see pictures of you and this Tyler person laughing and holding hands. Then, I get to the meeting and there's another one of your people from your 'agreement'. It's a little fucking weird, Bella."

I was starting to freak out. The reality that she was actually in my car after I had been looking for her and then I had kissed her in front of all those people was finally setting in. Irina was going to murder me for this one if those pictures were published.

"I can understand that, but imagine how I've felt the last five years. I was constantly around all those women, including your sister, so while I can relate, you don't get my sympathy. Maybe now you can start to see why I did what I did. I won't apologize for my actions because I don't owe you anything. What I do want to know is where are we going?"

She looked out the window and realized that we weren't headed to our area of L.A. Instead I took a turn onto the Pacific Coast Highway and we were on our way to Malibu.

"We're going to the beach," I stated.

"Why?"

"Because it's secluded for us, you can't run away, it's a gorgeous fucking day, and I want to go to the beach. I am going to talk, and you are going to listen." I pushed the child safety-lock button and earned myself an evil glare from Bella.

"Fine, I'm going to call Alice. She was expecting me," she said as she pulled out her phone.

I felt a sense of relief come over me at my kidnapping attempt. I had a gut feeling things were going to turn out all right. We would work through this. We could go back to being whatever it was before, and maybe we could even be stronger this time around. I was excited and hopeful. I could only hope that she would understand that I truly was sorry for saying the things I did.

"Okay, Alice…I have no idea when we'll be back." She gave me a small smile while listening to Alice blather about something. She hung up her phone.

"Alice said that Jasper needs to talk to about something so you should expect his call at any time."

She leaned back and closed her eyes. Suddenly her words hit me. I reached into my pocket and fumbled for my phone.

Before I could change any of the settings, The Rembrandts starting singing their god-damned one hit wonder.

Bella's eyes snapped open, "Are you fucking kidding me, Edward?"


	11. It's Just the Beach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 11: It's Just the Beach
> 
> AN: You guys are un-freaking-believable. Much thanks to IG AKA Irritable_Grizzzly, who keeps my commas and quotes at bay and BellaMadonna who has also has added this story to her forum. The link to the forum is available in my profile, as well as the pictures of Edward's beach house in Malibu.
> 
> I have now joined the 21st century and am on Twitter! You can find me under TG81_. Go figure…original, yes? I'm still getting the feel for it, so I apologize if my "tweets" or "twits" or "chirps" aren't very accurate. I have been told it is quite addicting. I scoff at the idea. However I once scoffed at the idea of fan fiction, look how that turned out.
> 
> Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyers owns all things Twilight, Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim own all music and lyrics to West Side Story, and I have a migraine.

Edward Masen

"Bella I swear to you, it's not what you think," I protested.

"I know."

" Jasper thought it was funny and I can't figure out how to change it," I tried to explain.

"Edward, I know," she said with a slight laugh. "Alice told me about it a couple of days ago. I have to admit, it is kinda funny."

"You're not mad?" I was shocked.

"Am I annoyed that Jasper knows? Yes. Am I mad? Nah, it's not my ring tone and besides, when was the last time you called Jasper?" She had a small grin playing on her face.

"I dunno, it's been a few days. Lately he's been the one calling me. Why?"

"Call him back and listen to what he says."

I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. He quickly answered yelling, "You son of a bitch! How did you get to my phone?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Bella just told me to call you," I replied.

"Alice must have done it, I gotta go," he said quickly and hung up on me.

"What was that all about?" I turned to Bella who was silently laughing.

"As mad as Alice was at you for the way you talked to me, she still thought it was pretty messed up that Jasper changed the settings on your phone. So she got a little payback on your behalf. Now every time you call him, his phone plays Natalie Wood singing as Maria."

I had no clue what she was talking about and it must have been obvious to her from the look on my face.

"Please tell me you've seen or at least have heard of West Side Story?" I shook my head no, causing her to huff.

"That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. West Side Story is a classic! How can you, as an actor, not be familiar with a piece of cinematic history?" She stared at me with wide eyes.

"Are you going to tell me the song or not?" I asked with frustration.

Then, with a slightly off key tone she sang.

I feel pretty,

Oh, so pretty,

I feel pretty and witty and bright!

And I pity

Any girl who isn't me tonight.

I feel charming,

Oh, so charming

It's alarming how charming I feel!

And so pretty

That I hardly can believe I'm real.

See the pretty girl in that mirror there:

Who can that attractive girl be?

Such a pretty face,

Such a pretty dress,

Such a pretty smile,

Such a pretty me! I feel stunning

And entrancing,

Feel like running and dancing for joy,

For I'm loved

By a pretty wonderful boy!

She was quiet for a brief moment and then busted out laughing.

"So that's what he hears now when I call him?" I asked.

"Yup."

"Bella," I asked with a cautious tone, "may I ask you a few questions?"

"I suppose so, although I'm not quite sure why I feel compelled to answer anything. You have kidnapped me."

There was slight humor in her tone, but not much. The mood in the car had shifted from light to slightly tense.

"Yes, you poor poor thing. I've kidnapped you and I'm taking you to my beach house in Malibu. I'm sure there is someone in your Blackberry who would love to take your spot." I rolled my eyes.

"Clearly I'm not going anywhere so just ask your questions," she spat at me. Her tone took me by surprise. I thought we were being somewhat jovial, but there was clearly something else going on.

"All right then. There have been a few things that I've wanted to know and since someone decided to go MIA and not answer any of my calls, now is just as good a time as any," I stated.

"Yes, Edward, because it's all about you," she snapped.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You asked me to leave, and if I recall correctly, it was right after you called me a whore and told me you didn't want me."

"I said I was sorry!" I yelled.

"Yes, you did and you also kissed me, but that doesn't mean I have to forgive you. Don't you get it? Just because you've forgiven yourself and decided to speak to me again, doesn't mean I have. Did you ever think about how your words hurt me? I would imagine the only reason you did apologize is because you feel bad about what you said. You weren't apologizing for how your words made me feel."

She was right…well only half right. I had only apologized for how I made her sad and not for how she felt.

"Bella, I am truly sorry for what I said. I was angry. I felt used and even though that's a feeling I've grown accustomed to in this business, I had never felt that with you. You told me a lot that day, so I had a lot to process."

I glanced to my right hoping that she was looking at me. Instead she was looking out the window; I could see small tear streaks on her cheeks.

"I do apologize for making you feel like that. It was not my intention. It's never my intention to make you upset."

"I once asked you what you wanted from me, and at the time you told me you wanted any part of me that you could have, and I said I could only give you my friendship. Things have changed a bit since I asked you that question." Her voice was soft and low. She was fighting back sobs, which in turn gave her the hiccups. If the tension in the car wasn't so damn intense I would have teased her about it. "Knowing what you know now, what is it that you want from me, Edward?"

"I can't answer that question at this exact moment, Bella." I saw her shoulders drop in defeat.

"Fair enough." She turned her body back towards the window.

"The reason I can't answer that now is because you haven't answered any of my questions yet. I need those answers in order to tell you want I want from you." I hoped that I was making myself clear.

She sighed, "What do you want to know?"

"That day at the Four Seasons, if Jasper hadn't approached you, would you have approached either of us?"

"No."

"Did you agree to the lunch because you recognized me?" I held my breath.

"Yes." My heart sank a little at her answer. "I was curious, Edward. God, I am completely going to regret this," she said lowly and took a deep breath, "I…"

"Can you say that again?" I smirked.

"Ugh. Fine, okay? I've had a fan girl crush on you for the past four years. There, happy now?" she huffed.

"Yes. So the reason you said yes, did it have anything to do with your list?"

"No. Even if Emmett and I hadn't established our rules, I would have still said yes. Like I said the other day, I was curious. Look at it from my perspective, okay? The best friend of one of the most recognizable actors in Hollywood asks me if I want to have lunch and says that you'll be there. It's a no-brainer."

I decided to get off this topic, I wasn't sure if I could handle too much more talking or thinking about lists and agreements. I had thought and over thought everything in the past few days so much that my brain was on the verge of a meltdown.

"Why did you leave California? I know what I said was cruel, but you didn't have to leave."

From the corner of my eye I saw Bella roll hers. "You really don't get it, do you? It's not all about you! Did you ever think that I had to go back or that maybe I was needed there? No, you probably didn't. I'm going to guess that you thought that I was so hurt and upset by what you said and by you making me leave that the fact we share the same zip code was unbearable for me." Her voice got louder, and she was on the verge of yelling.

I couldn't tell her she was wrong. The way she phrased my thoughts out loud made me realize what an egotistical asshole I could be. I didn't want to tell her that she was right, so I said nothing.

"I'm right, aren't I? If you must know, I went to New York because I had some business to take care of."

"I remember the names on your list Bella and I know you were with that Tyler guy. Since when is hanging all over him your business?" I pointed out.

"It isn't any of your business who I spend my free time with, but yes, Tyler is business and he's a very good friend." She pressed her lips together creating a thin white line.

"I'm sure he's a very good friend," I muttered.

"Do you have a triple-A membership, Edward?" She turned her body towards mine.

"Triple-A?"

"Yeah, Assuming Assholes Anonymous. You really need to just ask the question sometime instead of assuming that I'm-how did you say- whoring it up?" I cringed at her throwing my words back me.

"You're the one who said that you left him exhausted when you left," I smugly pointed out.

"Yes, he was physically exhausted and sleeping when I last saw him. Now instead of assuming that I had fucked him into unconsciousness, maybe you should ask me why he was sleeping and exhausted when I left him," she dared me to say something else.

"Okay, why was Tyler passed out when you last saw him?"

"Because his fiancé just had their baby and he had spent the past two and a half days learning how to care for a newborn child." She smirked and leaned back in her chair.

"Then why did Alec say that he remembers those days?"

"Because Alec has two kids. Again, if you just ask a question instead of assuming you knew it all, life would be a hell of a lot easier for everyone else. I'm not the type of girl who sleeps around, contrary to what you might think. I'm the girl who has people sleep around on her. If you ever want to know something, just ask me, I don't bite and I'll appreciate the fact you're taking an interest instead of thinking that you know better."

"I'm sorry, Bella. For everything, I am really sorry."

"I know."

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence.

Edward Masen

One hour later

When we arrived at my home I told her to look around and that I had a few things to take care of. She promised me that she wouldn't call the police about her kidnapping. I reminded her that she went willingly and there were plenty of witnesses at the valet stand. She rolled her eyes and said she needed to get in touch with Alice to find out what was happening with her schedule.

I left her alone and informed her that she could change into any clothes that she could find, knowing she would find suits and clothes leftover from whenever Tanya would stay. I didn't tell her it was Tanya's swimsuit she'd be wearing. Bella took the time to wander around the house, make her calls and relax a little. Meanwhile, I changed into some board shorts and went digging around the pool shed and found the beach towels and a few things left behind by the previous owners.

I came from behind the pool shed and entered the house from the side. From my angle, I was able to take in the sight in front of me. Bella was in a green two-piece suit with a very short cotton skirt covering her lower half. She had her back turned to me, so I didn't think she was aware of my presence, until she said something.

"Are you just going to stare at my ass all day or are you going to come and talk to me?" she called out from the porch.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you. You looked lost in thought." I joined her on the patio next to the railing that overlooked the shore.

"You know I've never actually played in the sand?" She kept staring at the water.

"How does that happen? You've never been to the beach before?"

"Oh don't get me wrong. I've been to the beach before, but I've never played. When I was a kid, Renee always had some socialite party to go to and I was locked away with the nanny. I was always told that the sun was bad for my skin and I would look older than my age.

As I got older, there were other things that took priority. I would have work or school or some pressing matter that Renee and Charlie insisted I be there for. When I finally did get a chance to have tropical vacations, it was always for an event, a party or some kind of networking thing," she said with a sigh. She no longer looked wistful, but just sad. "It wouldn't be acceptable to have their daughter playing in the sand," she said with bitterness.

"What about college spring breaks?" I asked.

She snorted, "Renee would never allow them for me. She said that she refused to have her daughter seen associating with the Hilton sisters or the Bush twins." She rolled her eyes at her own statement. "As if I would have anyway. Amongst the four of them, they were a mix of a walking pharmacy and CDC Petri dishes."

"Wow." It was all I could say.

"I've never even built a sandcastle."

Bella Swan

Three hours later

"Edward," I panted, "that was amazing. I've never done that before. Who knew I'd be so good at it my first time?" I rolled from my back to my side and grabbed one of the towels off the beach chair.

"I told you that you wouldn't be disappointed," he said smugly. He flashed me his lopsided smile and I had to look away. He was too damn charming and he knew it. It seemed that Edward couldn't help but cheer for himself that he finally did something right with me.

"Do you think we can do it again?" I cocked an eyebrow as I challenged him.

"Give yourself a few minutes and I'm sure we can work something out. Remember the sand puts up more resistance than you realize, you're going to feel it later." He motioned toward my lower body. Edward went to stand up to brush the sand off, but I pushed him back down.

We had been on the beach for a couple of hours now; after we had been on the beach for only a few minutes, he had taken off his shirt. It was too damn hot for me to worry about my comfort level and I certainly wasn't going to complain about the view. Edward kidnapping me to his house so we could talk and figure things out turned out to be exactly what I – no – what we both - needed.

"Don't worry about me. You're the one closer to AARP membership than I am. If anything, I should be worrying about your stamina." I slapped my hand on his bare chest causing him to wince; I forced myself not to focus on the solid muscle my palm had hit and I ignored the urge to run my fingernails between his abdominal muscles. I could see the beginnings of very nasty sunburn, but that's what he gets for refusing sun-block.

I stood up and grabbed the little bucket and filled it with water. I came back to our set-up to find a very pensive looking Edward. I didn't want to interrupt whatever deep thought moment he was having so I settled myself on the edge of the blanket and began working on the moat for our sandcastle.

I found myself in a happy place, a comfort zone of sorts. I was genuinely happy and slowly letting my guard down, as was he. I was letting him see the side that I had carefully built walls around.

I could feel the walls slowly coming down when I was standing on the back porch telling him about never playing on the beach. The silence that we had spent in the car ride down had given me time to think. Surely someone who would be willing to drive an hour away with another person they hardly knew just to get to know them better had to be interested. It was the only thing that made sense. It wasn't a "John Cusack-holding the boombox above his head on the-front lawn" kind of grand gesture, but it was grand enough for me.

The walls all but crumbled when he first surprised me with a small bucket and shovel. He also showed me where he set up the volleyball net and taught me how to play.

I owed him for his patience for teaching me and letting me be me. Then I owned him in volleyball. I didn't have the heart to tell him I played volleyball in prep school, so I let him think that he was a great teacher.

"Hey Bella?"

"Yeah?" I replied as I turned my attention away from my sandcastle and towards him. The sun seemed to frame his hair and highlighted the undertones of red and gold. For a split second his beauty took my breath away, and then I gave myself a mental punch in the ovaries for being a god-damned girl.

"Remember that question you asked me in the car?"

"Uh huh," I could feel my shoulders tensing.

"I have an answer for you." I paused to wait for a response and held my breath.

"Okay, and what is it?"

He pushed his sunglasses into his hair and looked me in the eyes. "The same as it was before. I want you in whatever way I can have you. I know that before you could only offer your friendship and if that's all I'll ever get, I'll be perfectly happy with that. I know you're struggling with things in your past and I just want you to know that I want to be there for you.

I want you, Bella. If that means I get the emotionally messy Bella or the Bella who has major trust issues, then that's who I want. I want to be good enough for you. I don't care how long it will take for you to trust me, because every single day I will do my best to prove to you that I can be the person you deserve to have." He let out a deep breath and averted his eyes to focus on a seagull that was about to shit on a soda can.

"Edward?" I slowly looked up at him. I was on my hands and knees and began crawling toward him like Tawny Kataen in a Whitesnake video. I sat back on the balls of my feet and reached for his hands. This was the moment I had needed and he said what desperately wanted to hear. My resolve to just be friends and to take things slow had been wearing on me. He would have to prove himself, without a doubt, and I couldn't fully trust him, but I wanted to believe in him more than anything. I wanted this to work and I would be willing to try. I wanted to prove to him and myself that I would be enough for just one person.

"Thank you. For the most part you are always able to tell me exactly what I need to hear. I just hope you can keep your promises. I need you to keep them, but I have to be honest with you," I paused and took a deep breath, "I don't want to be just friends with you. I'm not saying I can be sure of what will happen in the future, but I can assure you that I'll try. If you can keep your word, then I think that you and I can be more. I feel the connection between the two of us, and I think it would be stupid to ignore it. I want you in whichever way I can have you. We just need to take it slow and baby steps, if you will."

He was stunned. He sat silent for a moment before taking a firm grip on my hands and pulling me to him. I lost my balance and fell on top of him, knocking him backwards. He briefly chuckled and before I knew it he had me pinned to the towel. His mouth was hovering over mine; I was wondering who was going to have to make the first move. I didn't have to wonder long when I felt his mouth covering mine. I closed my eyes and opened my lips. Both of us groaned at the contact.

I put slight pressure on his shoulders and pushed him back. He looked at me bewildered, probably wondering why in the hell I would stop him. "Baby steps, not toddler."

It was all I needed to say and he nodded. He pulled himself off of me, but not before making it very clear how even toddler steps affected him. I've had sex before with a few different men and I would consider myself decently versed in that department. Taking into account everything I had experienced, I still tried to figure out how he was going to fit.

Edward knew that I could feel the calmness that easily overtook both of us every time we were together, but he never thought I would be ready and I wasn't sure that I was fully ready to be in a relationship but I would be willing to try if we took it slow, especially after everything that had happened in the car. I'm sure he thought we were going to go the friendship route and I he would have to watch me go through douchebag after douchebag before realizing – or hoping I would realize – that I was good enough for him.

Emmett had pretty much destroyed my faith in men and in myself. The only reason I had any confidence was because of Edward. If he would be willing to look past my flaws and get to know me, then I could do the same for him.

Edward Masen

Bella's promise that we could try to have something more than just a friendship and her admittance to us having something real was more than I had expected from her. When I woke up this morning, I was still trying to figure out where she had disappeared to. I would have never thought that less than twelve hours later she would be rubbing my calf muscles because – fucking hell – she was right. My muscles were going to be sore and I was older than I thought; I sure as hell wasn't about to tell her that, though.

After a few more minutes of sitting in silence, we agreed that we needed to get out of the sun and head up to L.A. From what Bella had said, Alice was not thrilled with me and my stunt with taking Bella away. Apparently Bella had some meetings to take care of and Alice had to cover for her or reschedule for another time.

We had just finished packing everything up and were heading into the house when we heard squealing behind us. I didn't have to look up to know what was happening, but my thoughts were confirmed when I heard Bella suck in a deep breath and mutter "fuck me."

"O-M-G! You're totally Edward Masen, aren't you?" I heard a high-pitched voice coming at me. I glanced up and saw that there were two young teenage girls who were practically vibrating from excitement. Thankfully, I was wearing my sunglasses so they couldn't see my eye roll.

"Yes, that's Edward Masen. I bet you girls would like an autograph?" I heard Bella ask, causing the girls to squeal even louder.

I shot Bella a look but either she couldn't see it because of the sunglasses or she ignored it; my guess was the latter.

"I don't think I have a pen, sorry girls," I shrugged turned toward Bella so we could go.

"I have a camera!" One of the girls shouted.

Bella moved to my side and whispered, "C'mon, Edward. Give them a couple of pictures. They can't be more than fourteen; it'd make their year to have a picture with you."

"Fine," I grumbled. Normally I would be more than happy to take a picture or sign an autograph, but we had had a long day at the beach, I was hungry again, and I had a fucking sunburn that was starting to itch.

The younger girl with the camera practically threw it at Bella and wrapped her arms around my neck. Bella instructed the girls to smile and pose with me. After taking a few pictures, they ran back to their blankets. We didn't waste any time in heading inside after that, just to make sure nobody else came after us.

"What are your plans for the rest of the day?" I asked Bella as she headed up the stairs to change.

She turned around and looked thoughtful for a moment and then shrugged, "I know I have some calls to return, but other than that, not much. I wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow, but since the baby was born early I had to come back earlier than planned. Why?"

I walked to where she was standing on the stairs and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her in close. She immediately put her arms around my shoulders and I forced myself not to cringe from the pain of the sunburn. I pressed my lips to her forehead and silently prayed she would say yes to what I was about to ask. I pulled back slightly and looked her in the eyes.

"I was hoping you would let me take you out tonight," I said.

She didn't respond immediately and shifted her weight from one foot to another.

"Like a date?"

"Yes, like a date. A first date. What would you say to dinner and a movie?" She still hadn't said no, so I took it as a good sign.

"What about the press? What if they see us?"

"What about them? If they see us, they get pictures. I don't really care and honestly, neither should you. You still haven't answered my question. Would you let me take you out on a date?" My palms were starting to get a bit sweaty and I moved my wipe my hand on my shorts.

"Edward, are you nervous?" she giggled.

"No," I lied.

"You are! That's adorable!" She giggled again. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh." She looked anything but sorry.

"Answer the damn question, Swan."

"Yes, Edward. I'd love to go on a date with you. Would like to pass a note to Alice in gym class later too?" She chuckled. She moved her arms to around my neck and whispered, "Thank you for asking me. It's been a while since I've done this. I might be really bad at it." She pulled back and I could see her eyes had a teary look to them.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," I assured her.

She placed both of her hands on the side of my face and gave me a quick kiss.

"Thank you," she said softly, and took off running up the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please keep in mind the full story is only at FF.net temporarily. Once I have made the full cut and paste to AO3, I'll be deleting it from FF.net.


	12. It's Just Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm currently babysitting a friend's baby who is napping. I'm taking the time to try and transfer the rest of this story. Thanks again for the kudos!
> 
> Much thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly, who puts up with my semicolons and constant quotation marks. Many thanks to BellaMadonna who use their awesome beta skills to make sense of my words and helped these two characters get somewhere. 
> 
> Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyers owns all characters associated with Twilight, however this story is mine.
> 
> See you at the bottom…

Edward Masen

After we got the car loaded, we drove in silence as we cruised down PCH. It wasn't an awkward silence like before. Before this afternoon, we weren't sure about what to say without tearing into each other, or my asinine assumptions making Bella highly defensive. Now we knew exactly where we stood. It was nice and it was comfortable, which was something I wasn't used to being with a woman.

Bella sat comfortably looking out the window, her left hand in my right, only letting go when I had to shift gears. When we reached the city limits, I gave her hand a squeeze to get her attention without breaking the silence. She turned her head towards me and smiled.

"So, what time should I pick you up?" I glanced at the clock and saw it was almost seven.

"Is eight-thirty okay? I need to shower and get out of these stuffy work clothes. Plus I have a feeling I'm going to get cornered by a spiky-haired sprite when I get home," she chuckled, then rolled her eyes and grinned at me. "I really did have fun today. It was not how I thought I was going to spend my day, but I'm glad it turned out this way."

"What were your plans for today?" I glanced over at her.

"I didn't have anything too pressing. I had a phone conference that I needed to take and there were some phone calls I had to return, but Alice did that for me. I know I need to call Tyler and let him know how everything went today. I do have a breakfast meeting I have to go to tomorrow morning though," she said as she pulled out her Blackberry.

"Are you already trying to get out of staying the night with me?" I teased.

She turned and looked at me with wide eyes. "No!" she practically shouted and slammed her hand over her mouth. "That's not what I meant. It's just that I have to get up early and… oh shit. This isn't coming out right is it?" She paused, then continued, "What I mean is that we all can't sleep in till noon and do whatever we want whenever we want. Some of us have real jobs–" She cut herself off before she dug herself in any deeper. Her face was turning a gorgeous shade of dark pink and it was taking everything I had not to just outright laugh at her.

She glanced over at me, saw my expression, and slapped me hard on my shoulder. "You ass! You could have just stopped me from making a fool of myself." She buried her face in her hands.

"I'm sorry, but that was just too funny." I couldn't suppress my chuckle any longer. "You really do have verbal diarrhea, don't you?"

She nodded. "It's only really bad when I'm nervous. It's ironic that it's my job to speak and interact with people and spin details on a daily basis," she said wryly. "When I'm in a casual setting, I'm far less anxious than when I'm working. In work mode it's usually not a problem, go figure. When I'm with you though, my mind seems to turn to mush."

"Are you trying to say you have trouble thinking around me?" I asked, and I couldn't help but feel flattered that I had that effect on her.

"With you or when I'm completely caught off-guard, which lately seems to be around you," she laughed, and then suddenly there's my random awkwardness and inability to shut the hell up..."

"Like what happened with Carlisle?" I prodded.

"Good lord your agent is an asshole!" she said loudly. "Does he really take himself that seriously? I mean come on Edward, the guy is good at what he does, there's no doubt about it, but does have to be such an arrogant prick at the same time?" she huffed.

"Did you ever consider that he's good at what he does because he's an arrogant prick? If I remember this afternoon correctly, you would have done well eating some humble pie," I pointed out.

"Okay, I can see your point, but does he really think his shit doesn't stink?"

"Yes," I answered simply, because I was pretty sure it was true. "By the way, watching you handle Carlisle and seeing you in a professional setting was fucking hot. You can boss me around any time." I glanced over and winked at her.

"I'll take note of that Mr. Masen," she said in a firm tone, which sent a warm, electric shock straight to my crotch.

"Uh-huh," was all I could say. I shifted slightly in my seat, hoping she didn't notice my hard-on. If she did, she didn't say anything; I'd like to think she did. It'd be a pretty big blow to my ego if she didn't.

"So are you going to tell me where we're going for dinner?" she asked.

"Nope, it's a surprise." I didn't want to tell her I had no clue what we were going to do. It was the middle of the week, but I still couldn't think of a place where we wouldn't be bothered. Any place that would be good would be busy. It wouldn't matter if the place was slammed, we would get a table, and for once, I was not going to use my celebrity status to get what I wanted. It left me with limited options.

"Bullshit," she said with a laugh and shook her head. "You have no idea where we are going, do you?"

"I promise you'll be surprised and it'll be good," I assured her, mentally crossing my fingers at my little white lie.

"I trust you, Edward," she said softly. I knew she was talking about more than dinner.

"I know." I smiled at her and lightly kissed the back of her hand. I let go to shift down and slowed in front of her house. "I'll be back to pick you up at eight-thirty."

She leaned over the console and gave me what started to be a chaste kiss, but her lips lingered on mine. I lightly pressed back against her mouth and slid my hand into her hair, pulling her into me more. Thankfully the lights flicked on as Alice and Jasper stepped out onto the front porch. Bella growled in annoyance, but both of us knew that if she stayed in the car any longer, we would never make it to dinner.

"I'll see you soon," she said hoarsely.

I nodded and shifted in my seat again. She stepped out of the car and before the door could fully close I heard her yell, "Jesus Horatio Christ, Alice. Are you my fucking mom now?" I shook my head and pulled out of her driveway and headed home.

Bella Swan

"Calm down, B," Jasper laughed as I brushed past him into the house. "All right ladies, now that everyone's settled in, I'm outta here. There isn't a chance in hell that I want to be here for any squealing, hugging and hand flapping that might go down when you two start to gossip." He grabbed a set of keys off the coffee table and gave Alice a quick kiss on the cheek. She shut the door behind him and looked at me at me with determination; in all honesty, it scared me a little.

"Uhmm, before I say anything, where's Emmett?" I asked.

"You haven't spoken to him?" Her eyes were wide with shock.

"Not since last Saturday," I said with a shrug.

"He came back on Monday morning and packed a bag. I haven't heard from him since. My guess is that he's either staying at a hotel or with Rosalie." Alice finally moved from the door and sat across from me on the couch.

"Oh." My heart fell a little bit at the fact that he hadn't even called to apologize or at least see how I was doing. We were engaged, for God's sake.

"Don't get all depressed on me, Swan. You haven't called him either, have you?"

I sighed, "No, I haven't. You're right, I shouldn't be mad." But I was. I had offered the parting shot – maybe I should call him?

"I know what you're thinking, Bella. Don't you dare talk to him! What he said to you was cruel and it was only a matter of time before everything fell apart. I just didn't think it would be that bad," she admitted.

"I know, I know," I said as I paused for a moment. "Okay, I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Good, me neither." Alice bounced on her knees. "Tell me everything, especially what the hell was up with today? First, I get the call that you're flying in from New York a day early. Then I get the text to pick up your stuff from the airport, and then you tell me Edward-freaking-Masen has taken you to his beach house for the afternoon!" She spat out the list, one by one. "How the hell does this happen to you and why on earth does it never happen to me?" she cried. "Never mind the fact that he was a first-rate asshole the last time you saw him!" She threw up her hands in exasperation.

"Whoa, okay, slow down, Ali," I said with a laugh. "First, Tyler now has a fiancé and she had a baby. That's why I came back early." Alice nodded already knowing this. "Then, I realized I was going to be late because my flight had been delayed, so I didn't have time to get my checked bags, hence why you needed to go get them for me. Thanks for that, by the way." Alice again nodded.

I glanced at the clock to see the time was going by faster than I had thought. "Walk with me, Edward is picking me up at eight-thirty and I'll be damned if I'll give you an opportunity to be alone with him."

I stood up and headed towards my bathroom. I waved my hand at her to follow me and I was sure as hell surprised when she vaulted over the couch and landed with a perfect dismount.

With a little shake of my head at her gymnastic abilities, I continued my story. "Then it turned out that the meeting Tyler needed me to cover was between Alec and Edward and his asshole agent, Carlisle Cullen." I rolled my eyes a bit at the memory. "The meeting went fine. Alec loved Edward and vice-versa. Then as Alec and I were at the valet stand, Edward pulled me aside and asked to speak to me privately." I paused a moment as I remembered what happened next. "He apologized for everything and then… he kissed me! In public, Alice! He fucking kissed me." I tried to pretend to be angry and I would never admit it to Edward, but that was one of the most passion-filled kisses I'd ever had.

"Please tell me they got it on film," she pretended to beg.

"Oh, I'm sure they did. I don't even want to think about it right now." I waved my hand dismissively. "Anyway, after that, Alec ditched me and Edward offered me a ride home, but instead of actually bringing me back here, he told me he was taking me to his other house so that we could have some privacy and really hash things out."

By this time I had stripped out of my pencil skirt and wiped the tiny sand granules to the floor. I started the water as Alice grabbed two towels for me and placed them on the toilet. She stepped out for a moment so I could jump in the shower. I admit I was purposely delaying all the details of my day because if she knew exactly what had happened and how I truly felt, she would hug and squeal and "hand-flap", as Jasper put it. If I was in the shower, she wouldn't have the chance to do it.

"Bella! Stop stalling and tell me what happened!" she yelled from the other side of the door. Uh-oh. I should have known she wouldn't fall for my tactics. She squealed as she continued her questioning. "Did you kiss? Did you guys have sex? Why do you have tan lines when I know you didn't have a suit with you? If anything, shouldn't you have zero zebra stripes?"

"Okay, I'm in!" I called from behind the shower curtain, and she was back in the bathroom in a flash. "If you'll settle down, I'll tell you what happened," I admonished her. "To answer your questions, we talked, Ali." I heard her humpf in disbelief. "I swear that's all we did. We talked… a lot. I promised him that we could try to be more than friends and he promised me that he would do whatever it took to earn my trust. He told me that he wants me and only me. Yes, we kissed, but no, we didn't have sex." I finished in a rush, leaving out the part about how badly I had wanted him to take me on the beach towel and do very dirty things with me regardless of where the sand would go.

Alice continued to squeal and I could hear her jumping around as she asked, "What about the tan lines?

"I didn't ask why he had suits there, but he did, so I threw on the only one that had tags on it. My guess is that it was Tanya's, but whatever," I said. Tanya and I were about the same size and it only made sense. I had always heard rumors that Edward was a bit of a man-whore so the thought that he would have taken a random conquest to a secluded house on the beach didn't make sense. I let myself float down the river of denial on the off-chance that it wasn't Tanya's bathing suit.

"So what's happening now? Oh, and it's almost eight by the way," she called from the other side of the curtain.

"Ugh, okay fine, he asked me if he could take me out on a date tonight and now we're going to dinner and a movie." I heard Alice snort derisively. "Don't laugh! It's cute and sweet and it shows he's trying."

"Whatever you say, Bella," she said, still laughing skeptically. "Do you want me to pick something out for you so you don't have to worry about picking out your clothes?" she asked. I noticed her change in demeanor; she had been trying very hard lately to curb her intruding ways. I appreciated it greatly and, to be frank, at the moment I really needed her help. It didn't matter that Edward and I had kissed a few times already or that we'd had a few private moments. I was going on a traditional date with an A-list movie star who I'd had had a crush on for years. Not to mention that I hadn't had a first date in over five years. I was terrified, but I didn't realize how nervous I was until I started shaving and saw how badly the razor was shaking in my hand.

I managed to finish my shower and made it out with only two nicks. I grabbed a towel and rushed to my bedroom, finally glancing at the clock and saw I only had fifteen minutes to get dressed and get my hair and make-up done. Luckily, Alice laid out the perfect first-date outfit with matching accessories. I quickly threw on the dark jeans and shiny black halter-top and slipped on the black ballet flats. I decided to not do anything with my hair other than a quick blow-dry and ran my fingers through it before I put it in a low ponytail. I had just put the finishing touches on my simple makeup when I heard the doorbell ring. I heard Alice answer the door and suddenly panic took over me.

What if he didn't like me after all? What if he decided that I wasn't worth the effort to get to know? All the self-confidence that I had been working so hard at building all these years went out the window as I forgot everything that had happened today. In a matter of minutes, I had reduced myself to the shy and awkward teenager I was in high school, but this time Jake wasn't there to hold me.

"Bella!" I heard Alice call from downstairs. "Edward's here!" I grabbed my clutch and slowly made my way downstairs, making sure I didn't trip or do something equally embarrassing.

When Edward came into view, his back was turned to me; he was looking at the photographs on my fireplace mantle. He looked stunning in a pair of dark wash jeans and cream-colored sweater with the sleeves pushed to his elbows. I cleared my throat to let him know I was behind him.

He spun around and his eyes widened a bit. "You look beautiful," he said as he pulled me into a hug. We had been apart for less than two hours and I already felt better in his presence. All my concerns and worries melted away in his arms. Fuck, he smelled delicious. "We'd better get out of here or I'm going to send Alice over to my place," he murmured, as his nose grazed the outer shell of my ear. I couldn't say anything, so I nodded.

I pulled back and saw his eyes had a glazed-over look. If he was feeling what I was, I knew exactly what this meant. Dinner was going to be a slow form of torture – sexual tension brought on by Edward Masen licking his lips. I turned to grab my keys and asked him as I glanced over my shoulder, "Where are we going anyway?"

"It's a little place off of Fairfax, you'll love it. It's quiet and small and I know the owners so we should have some privacy." He grabbed my hand and led me out the door and to his car. I called out to Alice to let her know I was leaving but didn't wait for a response. We needed to get out of that house.

In the car, the sexual tension was thick. What was once a calming and soothing feeling had escalated into a low but intense hum. I couldn't seem to stop my leg from bouncing. He reached over and placed his hand on my knee and told me to relax.

Oh, sure, like I could relax with his hand on my knee!

Edward Masen

Surely she couldn't be as nervous as I was. Maybe she wasn't nervous and just wanted to get the night over with. I sure as hell hoped not, but I wouldn't blame her. She had changed her mind about us in such a short amount of time that I was still shocked she wanted me.

She was willing to give me the benefit of the doubt, even though I hadn't really done anything to deserve it. I refused to fuck this up and if it turned out that she didn't want me after all, then at least I went down knowing I put up a decent fight. I knew I shouldn't be thinking about rejection, but it was hard not to. Around Bella, my resolve seemed almost non-existent. The cocky actor who could get anyone, anytime, anywhere, was no longer present; instead, Bella Swan had me reduced to the boy who took his half-sister to the prom.

Ever since I had dropped her off to get ready, I had become a nervous wreck. When I got home I scrubbed myself clean and stood in front of my closet for ages trying to figure out what to wear. It had taken me nearly twenty minutes just to decide on a sweater and pants. Then, I made a few phone calls and was able to arrange for a somewhat private table at a new restaurant that just opened.

I pulled myself back to the present and looked at Bella. Her leg was bouncing up and down like a jackhammer. I put my hand on her knee to try and calm her down, but in reality it was more to soothe my nerves and to make sure that she was really in my car and this was all really happening.

The drive from her house to the restaurant was a relatively short one and we didn't really have a chance to talk. Instead, silence and a low sexual tension began to build. I rounded the corner and saw a few scumbag photographers staked out at the corner by the front entrance of Animal, our restaurant for the night.

It was as if they noticed me at the same time I noticed them. I don't know how they could possibly have known it was Bella and me when we were half a block away. Someone had to have tipped them off, but nobody knew where we were headed. I parked the car on the side lot and turned off the engine.

Within seconds it felt like we were surrounded. I could see Bella hunched muttering something under her breath.

"Hey," I said softly, "it's okay. It's just you and me. Ignore everyone else, okay?"

"Edward, they're everywhere!" She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"So what?" I shrugged, trying to sound casual.

"I'm just warning you now that I don't deal well with pressure. I usually say something stupid when I get irritated," she warned.

"You mean like the sex tape scandal or what you said when you left The Ivy?" I laughed at her panicked expression.

"You heard about that, huh?" she looked at me, embarrassed.

"It was hard not to. In these situations, you just go with it. You do this stuff in your sleep; you can handle a few photographers asking stupid questions, can't you?" I didn't wait for her answer as I got out of the car and walked around to her side to open the door. The door swung open and I held out my hand to her. I watched as she took a deep breath and then nodded before she slowly stepped out of the car.

"I can't promise I won't say anything stupid," she said, giving me a mischievous little smile.

We started down the sidewalk, trying to ignore the stares, flashes and yelled questions. I was constantly amazed at how these jerks knew where I was going to be all the damn time.

"As long as you don't yell out something about a baby, I think we'll be alright," I joked with her.

"Please if I was going to say something like that, it wouldn't be a baby, it'd be more like 'twins!'" she laughed and then realized that she said that a little too loud. She looked at me wide-eyed and slapped her hand over her mouth. "Oh shit! We should get out of here. You might as well just take me home." She sounded dejected.

"Not a fucking chance. I promised you dinner and goddammit, I'm hungry. You're eating for three now and it wouldn't make any sense for you to skip a meal." This tongue-in-cheek humor made me giggle, and we pressed our way to the entrance.

We entered the restaurant and escaped the madness. The owners met us by the hostess stand and they repeatedly apologized for the paparazzi being tipped off. They assured me the hostess, who had inadvertently seen the reservation and had alerted the press, was currently in the back office being fired.

We were quickly seated in a private corner booth and were told the staff had explicit instructions to leave us alone. I could tell that Bella was still uncomfortable with all the whispers. I found myself wondering where the confident woman from "The Ivy" had gone, and who this shy girl was sitting next to me was.

"Bella, you can relax – in fact, I encourage it." I reached across the table and placed my hand on top of hers.

"I know, it's just weird. It's one thing to have the press follow me in New York; but here, they're absolutely rabid!" she said with a note of disgust. "In New York they at least have the decency to let you walk into a building, but here they try to block your entrance." She shook her head a little as she finally met my eyes. "But I guess it's only to be expected. You're way hotter than Em –" she stopped, catching herself, "– my other dates, so it's only natural that there are more cameras trained on you." The pink was rising up her neck to stain her cheeks.

I gave her an encouraging smile. "Well, I'm just wondering why you're so shy all of a sudden. We've been around each other enough that I would hope you could let your guard down around me by now." I wanted to assure her that she would be fine, but I remembered her saying she needed to take it slow and that probably didn't apply to just sex.

She swallowed a little and her eyes dropped to the table. "You're right, Edward. I'm sorry."

I moved my fingers to her chin and tilted her face up so her eyes met mine once more. She took a deep breath and continued, "You know…I just realized that I don't really know anything about you. You're familiar with my sexual history and my distaste of high society. You've seen me working and you've seen my temper," she stated with a little smirk. I let my hand drop as she took a sip of her drink and I mirrored her actions.

"So tell me, how many people have you slept with, Edward?" she said nonchalantly over the top of her wine glass.

I nearly choked on my drink and almost spit it back into the glass. "What?" I gasped.

She giggled, and persisted. "How many people have you had sex with? You seem to know about all of mine, I think it's only fair I know about yours." She shrugged and looked at me as she waited.

"Bella, that's not the type of getting-to-know-you conversation I was planning on having," I told her, a little unnerved by her question.

"So you don't know? Or do you need time to count?" I could see the corners of her lips turning upwards.

"If you must know, I never kept count and that's not something I'm entirely comfortable talking about in a public place." I glanced around, almost expecting a tabloid journalist to crawl out of the woodwork. "Is there something else you'd like to know about me?" I offered.

I would be willing to answer that question in a more private setting. My sexual history was not one I was ashamed of, but I wasn't about to go shouting about it from the rooftops, or confessing in a restaurant, that I am, no strike that - I was - a manwhore. I was hoping to change that with Bella; for her, I would try to be monogamous. I wouldn't give her a reason to doubt me and I refused to be like my father.

I saw the full-blown smile on her face and realized that she had been teasing me. "Okay then, why don't you tell me about where you grew up?" She was trying to relax and her little joke had seemed to do the trick.

I was also able to relax a little then and I told her about being born in Chicago and then moving out here when I was a little kid. I told her about my mom and her unwavering loyalty and our weekly pancake breakfasts. Every Sunday morning, Liz and I would get up and go eat pancakes then head to the zoo. I told her about how Jasper and I became best friends and when Tanya became part of the family.

Bella had told me about the pressure that her mother had put on her and the expectations that Charlie always put on her to take over his company. I told her how my father was always disappointed that I didn't follow in his footsteps. He didn't recognize my passion for acting until I had earned myself an audition for the Tisch, and even then he was hesitant. It didn't matter that acting was my dream. Being an actor wasn't a respectable profession in his eyes.

Every now and again Bella would interject with a question or a small story on her own, but I did most of the talking. It felt oddly comfortable to be sharing so much about myself. Normally on dates, the girls talked about themselves and didn't really care what I had to say. They only cared where the photographers were because they wanted to be seen with me. On the off-chance that they did care, I still had to be careful that the girl wasn't trying to get something out of me. It was comforting to know that Bella had her own means of supporting herself, not to mention that she was smart, witty, funny and beautiful in the classical sense. She didn't need a lot, nor did she want a lot. She was just Bella, and almost every time we had to separate I felt a part of me go with her.

Throughout the entire time we were at dinner, there were subtle touches under and over the table, glances that lasted a little too long, and I could have sworn she might have thrown out a sexual innuendo or two… or three. We were having an easy flowing conversation, but there was a steady undercurrent of sexual tension humming between us and it was quickly escalating. I had to stop myself at two glasses of wine, not only because I was driving, but also because the alcohol was having a direct effect on my libido. I already had to shift and readjust myself several times in the car on the way over and when Bella licked the drop of wine from the corner of her bottom lip, I nearly combusted on the spot!

After I settled the bill and we were ready to leave, one of the owners came by our table to let us know the press was still out front. They had called the police, but because they weren't technically trespassing, there was nothing they could do. Emboldened by liquid courage, Bella grabbed my hand and led me out the front door.

Once we made it outside, I moved my hand to the small of her back to help guide her. We were immediately accosted from all sides, but we kept our heads down and focused on making it to my Volvo. Every now and again I would take a quick glance at Bella and I was pleased to see the small smile she wore when we had left the restaurant had grown. It was huge, and I would've given anything to know what she was thinking at this point.

Bella Swan

I could barely contain the giddiness that had been building inside me all through the night. I was having a fantastic first date with an amazing man who was interested in me. He was interested in what I had to say about everything, and wanted to know what I was thinking He had even taken my little attempt at teasing with good humor. This was unlike anything I had ever really experienced before.

Dinner had been absolutely amazing. The food was great, the wine was delicious and I probably had one too many glasses, but I couldn't find myself caring. I was having a great time on a date and I didn't have to wonder – or care – who would pay attention. Tonight, we were just Edward and Bella.

I learned a lot about Edward tonight and I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I was relieved to find out he was the complete opposite of Emmett in almost every way. That was the only time I had even thought of Emmett during the evening. I hadn't been on a first date in over half a decade, but Edward had a soothing manner about him and I fully embraced the electricity and sexual tension that was building between us.

Walking back to the car, I couldn't help but smile. I didn't even realize it at first, but now that I was aware of it, I didn't really care.

I was happy. Happy and giddy and I didn't fucking care.

I had always told clients that if they were surrounded by paparazzi, they were to look disinterested and never show emotion. If they smiled, then it would appear they loved the attention, and if they made a scene, then it just gave the papps more fuel to try and provoke their target, i.e., my client. Yet here I was, smiling like a fucking Cheshire cat!

We were halfway to the car and the photographers were unrelenting. I grabbed Edward's hand and squeezed it tightly. I felt relief when he tightened his grip as well, but neither of us said anything. We finally made it back to the car and were halfway back my place when I finally said something.

"I know you said dinner and a movie, but I'm really tired. It's been a long day. Would you mind if we just watched a movie at my place instead?" I silently prayed that he would say yes, because I really wanted to be alone with him.

"Absolutely. After all that, I don't think I really want to deal with being in public anymore tonight."

He took my hand in his and lightly kissed each of my knuckles before lacing our fingers together. The remainder of the car ride was spent in silence. We pulled up in my driveway only to see Jasper's car parked haphazardly near the door. We looked at each other in confusion and got out.

I unlocked the front door and we were instantly assaulted with the pungent aroma of vanilla candles, Journey's classic hit "Loving, Touching, Squeezing" and very high-pitched giggles from Alice. I turned and looked at Edward and he had his lips mashed together as his shoulders shook in silent laughter. I mouthed "your place?" and he nodded. I quietly shut the door and we ran back to the car.

Once we were back in his Volvo, Edward and I busted out into full-blown laughter.

"Oh my God, Bella! That has to be one of the funniest things I have ever witnessed," he gasped out as he struggled for air.

"Tell me about it." I was having trouble breathing myself. "What I think is even better is the fact that he left right after you dropped me off. Those two can't stay away from each other." I continued to laugh. "I don't think I'll need this for the rest of the night." I turned off my Blackberry.

"It's not a bad thing that they're spending their free time with each other," he stated as he laced his fingers with mine again. "You and I spent the day together and I don't think our day turned out so bad, do you?" he asked, the laughter in his eyes now replaced by a smoldering gaze.

"Not at all," I said, as I felt the heat rise to my face at the look in his eyes. "I've had a lot of fun today. Thank you again," I smiled at him slowly, feeling the heat from my face move to other parts of my body. He seemed to visibly relax at my words.

We made our way back to his house in record time. It felt a little weird to be standing in front of his couch. The last time I had been here was when I told him everything about my relationship with Emmett and he asked me to leave.

I wasn't quite sure what to do with myself. Suddenly, I felt his presence behind me and felt his arms snake around my waist. He brushed my hair to the side and placed light kisses from my ear down to the curve of my shoulder.

"Do you really want to watch a movie, Bella?" his voice had taken on a low husky quality.

"Uhmm, no?" I chirped, my body tingling from the touch of his lips.

He chuckled softly. "It's okay," he whispered, nuzzling my neck before pulling back. "Make yourself comfortable. Would you like a drink?" he asked as he turned away. I settled onto the couch and nestled myself between two very fluffy pillows. I closed my eyes for just a second and before I knew what it, I fell asleep.

Edward Masen

She smelled amazing. Being that close to Bella, I could only hope she couldn't feel the effect she was having on my body. It was one thing to be aroused by a woman; it was something else to have a constant erection and let her be aware of it. I forced myself to walk away from her and go into the kitchen. I peered around the corner to see her sit down and get settled into the couch.

I ducked back into the kitchen and gave myself a pep talk. I rolled my shoulders and shook off the jitters. I could do this; I had no reason to be nervous. This certainly wasn't my first rodeo, as Jasper would say. I realized I hadn't even asked Bella what she wanted to drink, so I grabbed two bottles of water and headed back to the family room.

My heart fell a little when I saw her curled up, fast asleep. I thought back through the day and realized she must be exhausted. In one day she had flown across the country, attended a work meeting, spent the rest of the day at the beach and went on a date. It was amazing she hadn't fallen asleep sooner.

Knowing what Jasper and Alice were up to at her house, I wasn't going to take her back home. I scooped her up in my arms and felt great when she nuzzled herself into my chest. Without thinking, I carried her to my bedroom and laid her down gently on my bed. I ran off to my bathroom and quickly stripped down and changed into a pair of flannel pajama bottoms and an old t-shirt.

After removing her shoes, I briefly wondered what I was to do next. Should I undress her? Would she be all right sleeping in her clothes? I made a quick decision and stripped her out of her jeans. There was no way she would have been comfortable trying to sleep in those tight clothes. My heart nearly stopped as I saw the scrap of black lace hidden underneath.

Maybe I should I sleep on the floor? Would she like it if I slept next to her or would she be pissed? My questions were answered for me when Bella unexpectedly revealed something about herself.

She talked in her sleep.

"Mmmmm….Edward…." She rolled over to her back and moved her arms around a little "Edward….cold…." I sure as hell hoped that she was referring to the fact the sheets were cold without me. I lay down next to her and pulled her back to my chest. She fucking ground her ass right into my crotch. My eyes rolled to the back of my head and it took every ounce of proper upbringing Liz drilled into me not to wake her up. I closed my eyes and in spite of the direction of my thoughts, sleep found me quickly as well. It was the best sleep I'd had in as long as I could remember.

Bella Swan

"Bella…psssst…Bella….you need to wake up," I heard a voice whisper. I cracked my eye open to see Jasper staring at me, inches from my face.

"Jasper! What the hell are you doing?" I whispered harshly. I heard Edward groan behind me and pull me tighter to his chest. I glanced at the alarm clock on the side-table and saw it was only three in the morning.

"Bella, Alice has been trying to get in touch with you for the past couple of hours. You have your phone shut off," he pointed out.

"Yeah, I know. You woke me up to tell me my phone was shut off? Go the hell away." I closed my eyes and felt myself drifting.

"Darlin', this is an emergency. I swear I would not be interrupting if it wasn't. You need to go home, now. Alice is downstairs and will explain everything," he said a little louder.

"Okay, okay," I said. "I'm up, I'm up."

Jasper nodded and quietly left the room. I gently removed myself from Edward's arms and quickly took in my surroundings. I'm not sure how it happened, but I had ended up in his bedroom. I would have to ask him about that later. Clearly nothing happened because, even though my shoes and jeans were on the floor by the bed, I was still wearing my underwear and top, and I honestly didn't think Edward would have taken advantage of a sleeping woman.

I grabbed my jeans and shoes and quickly put them on. I saw a piece of paper and quickly found a pen and scribbled a note to Edward telling him that I had an amazing night and I would call him later. I also mentioned that Jasper would tell him everything and that I was sorry I had to leave. I placed the note on the pillow next to him. He looked so peaceful and relaxed. I should have woken him, but couldn't bring myself to do it. Instead I gave him a light kiss on the forehead and quickly ran my fingers through his hair.

"Bella!" I heard Alice call. With one last look at Edward, I sighed and shut the door behind me.

I made my way down the stairs and saw a very upset, frenzied and pale-looking Alice. "Jesus, Alice! What the hell is going on?"

"Bella, we need to go. You have to get back to New York immediately." She rushed her words out so fast I barely understood her.

"Why? I just got back. What's happening?" I could feel myself starting to panic. Alice was always pulled together, even at her worst.

I could hear the fear and dread in her voice as she said, "It's Charlie."

I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank everyone for being so patient in getting this chapter up. I initially had chapter 12 and 13 together and it would have been almost 30 pages at this point and I couldn't do that to my beta's. They've never done anything mean to me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fic rec's:
> 
> Autumn in New York by Sweetishbubble. It's a sequel so you might want to read Home first. It's angsty but there is a great story underneath.
> 
> Master Race by Babette12
> 
> Caravaggio by meimei42.


	13. It's Just Charlie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just Charlie
> 
> Stephenie Meyer owns all Twilight, I have a pretty good copy of New Moon.

"Bella, it's Charlie."

I could tell from the tone of Alice's voice that it wasn't good. As we hurried out of Edward's house, she continued, "He's in the hospital. I'll explain as we get you to the airport. Your bag's already in the car." I nodded and motioned for her to move faster as we left the house.

As we reached the car, I noticed Jasper was following us. "I got the call a couple of hours ago and I've been trying to get a hold of you," Alice said, as her voice was raised a little in accusation. "You and Edward both had your phones off. I didn't worry at first, because I thought you knew and that maybe Renee had already reached you, but then Renee called me looking for you and then Emmett called." She was wringing her hands as she tried to explain. "I ignored his calls at first, but Bella, nobody could get a hold of you, and we came here."

We piled into Alice's car, Jasper driving, and took off for the airport.

"Alice, why is Charlie in the hospital? What's happened? Is he okay?" I turned on my phone and cringed. I had twenty-four missed calls, twenty voicemails and over thirty text messages from Emmett, Renee, Jake and Tyler.

She took a deep breath, "Bella, Charlie had a heart attack. It was a pretty bad one apparently. He's in the ICU right now and is scheduled for surgery to remove the blockages. Actually," she paused and looked at the clock, "he should be going in right now. There is a flight leaving in an hour and a half, and if you make it on time, you should be able to be there when he wakes up." She gave me a small but encouraging smile. "I've already purchased the ticket for you and you should be able to carry on your bag. I'll be flying out later today and I'll bring the rest of your stuff." She gave me an apologetic look. "You got the last seat on the last flight out. I'll be there in the early afternoon."

I couldn't breathe. My head was spinning as Alice's words sank in and I resisted the urge to vomit i. I couldn't lose Charlie, I just couldn't. Out of everything that had been fucked up with Renee and Emmett and Maria, Charlie had always been my saving grace. He was my best friend. He taught me everything I knew about the business and about life. He had always been there and supported me in all my decisions and he taught me how to trust my judgment and make the right decisions.

This couldn't be happening. He was only fifty-nine for God's sake! He was too young to die. No…Charlie wasn't going to die, he wasn't. He was going to be fine. They would do the surgery and repair whatever they needed to. Afterward, I would find the best cardiologists and nutritionists and get him back on the right track. I wouldn't lose him, not like this.

We arrived at LAX and I grabbed my bag and ran through the airport. Thankfully security didn't take as long as I had expected and I was able to make it to the gate ten minutes before boarding. I called Edward and hoped he would answer. Instead, his voicemail picked up and I left a message saying I had to leave for an emergency. After I hung up, I heard the call for the first-class passengers and I saw a familiar face a few people ahead of me.

"Emmett?" I called.

He turned around.

"Bella?" He stepped out of line and gave me a tight hug.

"Thank God you're here! How are you? I take it you got my messages?" he asked. He looked exhausted, in fact, he looked downright terrible.

"Alice found me and explained everything on the way here," I said. "I had shut off my phone. That's the first and the last time I ever do that," I mumbled to myself. We got back in line together and boarded the plane.

After we were settled in our seats I shot a quick text to Alice to let her know I made the flight and that Emmett was sitting two seats away. She immediately wrote back that Charlie's hospitalization was headline news on all the networks but that much of the information was wrong. They were already declaring that Charlie was dead. Just the thought of Charlie dying filled me with dread. I quickly tried Jake and Renee's phone again, but both went straight to voicemail.

"So Bella, where exactly were you that you had your phone shut off and Alice had to find you?" Emmett whispered as he leaned over the aisle.

"I really don't think that's any of your business," I snapped. The last thing I needed right now was to deal with Emmett's prodding into what wasn't his concern anymore.

"You're right, it isn't," he shrugged.

"Why are you going to New York, Emmett?" I asked.

"I'm going for Charlie," he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh bullshit," I countered.

"Get off it, Bella. You know I love Charlie like a second father. When I heard what happened, the first thing I did was call you to see how you were doing. Believe it or not, I do still love you and your family." He folded his arms and waited for me to respond. I felt guilty. Charlie had taken Emmett under his wing and given him advice and guidance when it came to the business side of his career. Emmett did love Charlie like a second father, especially since his real father didn't give a damn about him unless it would help his re-election campaign.

Just then a flight attendant who'd been eyeing Emmett and me, approached us.

"Aren't you guys-"

"No," we both said at the same time. Emmett shook his head. I sighed and leaned back and closed my eyes. I had a feeling this would be the last chance I would get to sleep before we got to New York.

Edward Masen

I was alone.

She was gone.

My heart sank.

Bella was gone and judging by the coolness of the sheets, she had been gone for a while.

I went downstairs holding a small hope in my heart that she would be in the kitchen but I knew that wouldn't be the case. Instead I was met with Jasper holding a cup of coffee and the TV tuned to a news channel.

"Mornin', E." Jasper handed me a mug of coffee.

"Yeah, morning," was all I could say. I instantly started looking for my phone. I remembered that I had left it in my pants from the night before and headed back to the bedroom. "Did you see Bella leave this morning?" I called out from the stairs.

"Yeah, I gave her a ride to the airport this morning," he called back. I could hear him come into my room. He stood in the doorway looking at me. My head snapped to him as I pulled my phone from my pocket. The battery was dead. I quickly plugged it into the charger.

"What do you mean you gave her a ride to the airport? She took off again?" I yelled. I sat down on the bed and ran my fingers through my hair. How the fuck could she do this to me again? God! I really cared about her, but there was only so much of the running away that I could take.

"Bro, calm down," Jasper intervened quickly. "There was an emergency. Alice and I dropped her off at the airport really early. She didn't have time to wake you and she said she wrote you a note." I watched as he looked around the room. "I'm sure you'll have a voicemail from her too," he tried to assure me.

"What do you mean an emergency? Is Alice okay? Where did she go?" I asked all at once.

"Seriously, Edward, you need to calm down." I watched as he took a deep breath before continuing. "It's her Dad. Charlie had a pretty nasty heart attack last night. We couldn't get a hold of her. Alice and I came here on the off-chance she was here and luckily, we were right. Alice's flight left an hour ago. She's gone to be with Bella in New York," he explained.

I felt a bit of pressure rise off my chest. I was relieved it wasn't anything I had done to make her go, and then I instantly felt guilty for thinking of myself when her dad was dying or might already be dead. "How is Charlie?" I asked. I got up and turned on my phone.

"It's not looking too good from what Alice said. I tried calling Bella but she isn't answering. The media has been saying that Charlie has actually passed," he paused. "Uhmm, there is something you should know that Bella told Alice before she left," Jasper looked at the ground as he spoke.

"What is it?"

"It turned out that Emmett was on the flight Bella caught." He looked up and grimaced. I froze.

"Why the fuck is he going there?" I asked through clenched teeth.

"It kinda makes sense if you think about it. Up until a short time ago, McCarty was going to be Charlie's son-in-law. Alice said their families are really close and stuff. Look, I'm sure that it'll be fine. Maybe you should get cleaned up for the day and try and give her a call, yeah?"

I nodded in agreement as I made my way to the bathroom. I took what was possibly the quickest shower of my entire life and walked back into my bedroom to hear an electronic beeping sound. I had five new voicemails. I immediately dialed and was relieved to hear Bella's voice. I didn't even finish listening to her messages before I hung up and called her.

Amazingly enough, she answered on the second ring.

"Edward?" she whispered.

"Bella, how are you? Are you okay? Jasper just told me what happened." I barely restrained myself from yelling into the phone.

"I wish I wasn't here, that's for sure. I'm not okay, I'm barely hanging on here," she sobbed.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" I offered. I knew it was pointless and that I was useless from across the country.

"No," she sniffled, "there isn't anything anyone can do. All we can do is wait right now." She started sobbing again. I found myself sitting on the edge of my bed with a burning sensation in my eyes as tears started to form.

"Bella, you need to take a deep breath. Are you at the hospital?" I asked softly.

"Yes," she choked.

"Are you by yourself?"

"No. Renee is here. God Edward, I want to beat that woman senseless! The first thing she talked to me about when I got the hospital was how I looked. She said I should know better than to show up looking like I'd been up all night." She laughed humorlessly. "Can you believe her?"

"Don't let her get to you, love. Alice is on her way. She'll be there soon," I tried to reassure her, feeling helpless sitting here three thousand miles away.

"I know. Jake and his dad, Billy, are here. And … uhmm, I just feel like you have the right to know that Emmett was on the same flight. I had no idea and I swear whatever pictures or video you see, it's not what it looks like-"

"Bella," I interrupted her, "I don't care if Emmett is there right now. I just want to make sure that you have someone there for you. That is what is important right now."

"Yes, I have people here for me. I'm so sorry I didn't wake you this morning. Last night was wonderful." I could almost see the smile in her voice. "Oh fuck off, Jake! I'll deal with you later." Her voice was muffled. I could hear Jacob in the background saying something, but at least it eased the tension in her voice.

"Hey, Edward. I gotta go. The doctor just walked in."

"Okay, Bella, if you need anything, and I do mean anything, please call me, okay?" I pleaded with her.

"Okay. Bye," she said softly.

Bella Swan

"Mrs. Swan?" I heard the doctor call for my mother. I told Edward that I needed to hang up and I promised I would call if I needed anything. What I wanted more than anything at that moment was for him to be there. Emmett had been sitting with Maria in the cafeteria and I had been talking to Billy and Jake, but none of them could offer me the comforting feeling I had around Edward. I certainly wasn't going to tell Edward though; that would scare the living piss out of him.

When I landed at JFK I was instantly grateful again for having Alice as my assistant. A car was waiting for me and while I'm not normally thrilled at the idea of riding around the city in a limo, right now I couldn't care less. I was also thankful that Emmett had kept our place in the city and we had our bags sent to our old penthouse after we were dropped off at the hospital.

Arriving at the hospital was a nightmare in itself. The press was everywhere and we were bombarded with camera flashes. Anything I had previously said about the New York media being more tame than the L.A. press I immediately took back. Emmett wrapped his arms around my shoulders in a protective manner and promptly told the reporters to "fuck off".

We reached the lobby of the floor Charlie was on and were greeted by Maria, Jake and Billy. Renee was in Charlie's room when we arrived and the first thing she said to me after giving me a hug was that I should have fixed my makeup and changed my clothes before coming to the hospital. There were reporters outside and what would the world think of Charlie Swan's daughter dressed like she was out all night coming to grieve for her father.

I snapped at her that he wasn't dead yet and she should stop acting like he was. Renee immediately broke down in what I assumed were only half-crocodile tears and I had sympathy that she was showing some kind of emotion when she didn't have a vast audience. She left the room with Emmett and gave me time to talk to Charlie on my own. He looked like hell had washed over him and I was thankful that he was in a deep sleep so that he couldn't see the show Renee was putting on. He would have been mortified.

I know they say that people in comas can still hear so I figured I'd try and talk to Charlie. I told him about Edward and the deals I had made. I told him about how much I was enjoying California and how much I missed him. I apologized for not spending as much time with him as I had wanted to lately. Even if Charlie had been conscious for my diatribe, I would have been met with the same silence, the only difference was that if Charlie was awake, he would have asked if I was happy – that was all he ever wanted for me.

How he stayed married to Renee and put up with her shit for all those years, I will never know.

"I'm Renee Swan," my mother spoke up. She stood and walked over to the doctor. They spoke in hushed voices. Renee quickly glanced over and waved for me to come over.

"Mom, what's going on?" I asked.

"Bella, this is Dr. Cheney, he's the doctor who worked on your father," Renee introduced us. We briefly shook hands and I immediately went back to wrapping my arms around my chest. It seemed as if my body automatically felt better if I tried to physically hold myself together.

"Mrs. Swan, Miss Swan-" Dr. Cheney began.

"Please, call me Renee and this is Bella," Renee interrupted him. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her blatant flirting. Leave it to Renee to be hitting on a doctor while her husband lay dying.

"Uh, okay then," he stammered. I'm sure he wasn't used to patients' family members trying to hit on him. "When Mister Swan was scheduled for surgery we were going in with the understanding that he had a few blocked arteries and we would be clearing them out. We knew there would be some damage, but we wouldn't know the extent until we went in." He paused and took a deep breath. "We were going to perform a Coronary Artery Bypass, but the damage was too great. The bypass was not possible."

"So what are you saying exactly?" Renee asked quietly.

"What I'm saying is that we did all we could do. Mr. Swan suffers from severe coronary artery disease. There is a lot of scar tissue and for us to perform anymore surgeries on his heart without knowing exactly what we are doing or looking for, I don't think he would live through it. We have him on a ventilator and he is sedated right now." Dr. Cheney looked down at his feet. My stomach dropped. I knew what he meant. My dad was going to die.

"Surely there is something you can do," Renee pleaded. I simply nodded in agreement. These were the best doctors in the country; they had to be able to do something. I could feel the tears streaming down my cheeks. I didn't even bother to try and wipe them away, I didn't care.

"The only hope your husband has is if a donor becomes available, and soon. We have some paperwork for you to sign if you want to put him on the registry list to receive a heart." Renee nodded in response and followed him to another part of the floor to fill out the paperwork. I went to sit back down and started crying again.

"Bells, what did the doctor say?" Jake asked.

"He said Charlie needs a new heart and unless he gets one, he's going to die," I choked out between sobs. I heard Billy mutter a curse and looked up surprised. Billy may be a powerful man who was a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, but at that moment I saw a man who was losing his best friend.

"Bella!" I heard Alice's voice and looked up to see her rushing towards me. "I'm so sorry it took me so long to get here. Apparently they can't move the plane any faster no matter how much you want them to. Have you seen the doctor yet? What did he say?" She turned and looked around and asked, "What the hell are you doing here, Emmett?" Emmett snapped his head in her direction and glared at her.

"We have every right to be here, Alice," Maria spoke up. I looked over to see Maria jut out her chin. I think she tried to raise an eyebrow but was halted by her over-use of Botox.

"Bella, what did the doctor say?" she asked in a softer tone. I broke down crying again. "When was the last time you ate? Let's get you to the cafeteria and at least get you some coffee okay?" she offered.

"Nonsense, I'll order something and we can have it delivered," Maria spoke up.

"We don't need to have anything ordered, mom," Emmett said.

"You want to eat the garbage they serve here? You're better than that, dear," she patted his cheek condescendingly.

"Oh fuck off, Maria. Hospital coffee is fine. Bella, would you get me a cup if you go down?" Billy asked. Maria huffed and stomped off to a corner and pulled out her phone. I stared in wonder at Billy for the second time in just as many minutes. Billy never swore.

Alice pulled me to my feet, threw her arm around my shoulder, and escorted me to the elevators. "I got a text from Jasper. He and Edward are on their way."

"What do you mean they're on their way?" I asked confused. "I just talked to Edward a half an hour ago."

"All I know is that I turned my phone on when the plane landed and had the message waiting for me. It said that their plane was going to be landing in a few hours." I nodded in acknowledgement. I felt a little better knowing Edward was coming. Knowing he cared enough to travel all this way meant a lot. I instantly felt guilty that I was feeling anything other than sadness or grief. My focus needed to be on Charlie and not on a potential relationship.

During our ride in the elevator I quickly filled in Alice on what Dr. Cheney had told us. The walk to the cafeteria was silent with the occasional sob from Alice or me. I sat at one of the tables playing with a blueberry muffin wrapper. I was supposed to eat the damn muffin. I should eat it, but the thought of eating anything made me want to vomit. Our silence was interrupted by a beep on the hospital intercom. "DR. CHENEY, CODE BLUE. DR. CHENEY, CODE BLUE!".

"Shit, Alice! That's my dad's doctor!" I yelled and ran towards the stairs. The elevator would take too long. We flew up the seven flights, busted through the entry door and ran into the waiting area. Alice and I were panting and gasping for air. Jake had wide eyes and pointed down the hallway.

We ran there to see Renee crouched and rocking back and forth while Dr. Cheney pulled out the defibrillator paddles to shock Charlie's chest. After what seemed like an eternity, the room fell silent.

I heard a soft voice call for Dr. Cheney's attention.

All I heard was, "Time of death." And then everything went black.

Edward Masen

"Bye." I hung up and suddenly knew what I had to do. "Jasper!" I yelled, but I didn't hear anything. "Jasper!" I called out again. I walked into the family room and saw him on the phone. "Sorry," I mouthed to him. He held up his finger telling me to give him a minute. He finished his call and looked at me.

"I think we should go to New York," I stated.

"I already gotcha covered. That was the airline and I was able to get us two seats out in a few hours. We need to pack and fast, but we can get out there pretty damn quick if I drive. I don't care who's at the hospital right now. You and I both know those girls are going to need us."

I looked at him a bit confused. "What am I missing?" I asked him.

"I looked up the surgery that Alice said Charlie was having. If he needs this procedure done, he's in really bad shape. It's more like a last ditch effort. It ain't lookin good for Bella's old man."

"All right. When do we leave?" I asked.

"The flight takes off in a little less than three hours. We need to leave within the hour." He got up and headed towards his room. I went back to mine, pulled out a small duffle bag and started throwing random shit I thought I might need. I flipped on the TV for background noise and I searched the room for my iPod.

I had only been packing for a few minutes when annoyingly loud music coming from the TV that caught my attention. The show was being interrupted to announce something important. The screen flashed a picture of a man who had Bella's brown eyes. "Jasper!" I yelled. He came running into my room and I pointed at the TV.

There was a very tired looking doctor who said that Bella's father was currently in a medically-induced coma and that the family wished for their privacy to be respected at the current time.

"Fuck," Jasper muttered. "C'mon man, we'd better get going. Maybe we can try and catch something earlier, I dunno." He walked back to his room.

I had an idea. I called Carlisle and asked him if I could use his agency plane. I didn't give him any specifics, just telling him that if he wanted to keep me a happy client he needed to give me access. I'm sure he would eventually connect the dots if he hadn't immediately done so already. Carlisle may be many things, including a pain in my ass, but stupid was not one of them.

Jasper and I were assured there wouldn't be a problem and he even offered to send a car so that we wouldn't have to drive to the airport ourselves. I went to Jasper's room to let him know about the slight change of plans. At first he was pissed because he already spent the money on the tickets, but when I told him we would get there much sooner, he let his anger fade.

I had just finished packing when I received a text from Carlisle explaining that everything had been arranged and a car should be at my house shortly. Not ten minutes later, I heard the front gate buzz alerting me the car was here.

The ride to the airport and the flight itself were relatively painless and annoyance-free, much to my surprise. After we landed at a private airport, we took a car to our hotel and dropped our bags off. Jasper had started texting Alice as soon as we landed. Alice called briefly to let us know that Charlie had passed away and Bella had fainted. She was still unconscious as we headed to the hospital.

We let Alice know that when we arrived at the hospital, we were going to be let in another entrance because of the press that was camped outside the main entry. Alice met us around the back and quickly gave us each a hug and filled us in. She looked like hell. It was clear she had been crying and she admitted that she hadn't slept in over twenty-four hours.

"Bella heard the doctor call the time of death and she just collapsed," Alice sobbed as she led us to the elevators. We received a few curious looks as we worked our way through the ground floor.

"So where is she now?" I asked.

"They put her in a room and have given her an IV. Apparently she was really dehydrated, and combined with the stress of everything that happened, her body just shut down. The doctors gave her and Renee both sedatives to help them calm down." Alice's eyes stayed focused on the ground.

"Hopefully she'll be up soon though. I know she'll be happy to see you." She gave me a half smile.

"Just let us know what we need to do and we'll do it," Jasper told her. Alice gave him a bigger smile and a one-armed hug. "Thanks again for coming guys, it really will mean a lot to Bella when she sees you here." She paused. "I will warn you now though that Emmett and Jake are in Bella's room. I don't think you'll have any issues with Jake, but Emmett…"

I didn't like the idea that Emmett was here, but there wasn't too much I could do about it. From what Bella had told me, the McCarty fand Swan families had become good friends throughout the time that Bella and Emmett were together. We finally reached the floor where Bella was, and as the elevators opened, I took in the scene before us.

There was an older woman slumped in a chair who looked enough like Bella for me to figure this was Renee. She was holding hands with a Native American man in a wheelchair. I took a closer look and saw that he was Jake's father, William, or Billy as Bella referred to him. There was also a woman sitting next to Renee looking incredibly bored. She was fidgeting with her dress and looked as if she would rather be anywhere else.

As we walked towards the group in the waiting room, Alice cleared her throat.

"Renee, these are friends of Bella and mine. They flew in from L.A. when they heard what happened and wanted to offer their condolences."

She quickly introduced us to everyone and I learned that the bored-looking woman was Maria, Emmett's mother. She eyed Jasper and me and frowned slightly. At least I think it was a frown. The woman looked like she had enough Botox injected in her face that she barely could move her eyebrows.

"Yes, well I think it's lovely that you boys flew in from California, but I think my Emmett's got everything under control," Maria said. "This is a time for family and I don't think Bella would appreciate you boys being here."

Alice snorted in response.

"Maria, would you please shut the hell up? I'm not family but I'm here to be supportive. The last thing you've been is supportive and instead done nothing but irritate the staff, as well as the rest of the visitors," Billy said. I internally cheered Billy on as the corners of Maria's mouth turned down. I was astonished at her level of self-entitlement.

Renee immediately stood and smoothed out her dress and shook our hands. She apologized for her appearance and assured us that she didn't normally look like such a mess. I hoped that I was a good enough actor to hide my shock and horror. The woman's husband had passed away literally hours ago, and she was apologizing for her appearance? I tried to write off her behavior and told myself she was in shock from everything that was happening, but after what Bella told me about her, I wasn't so sure.

Alice told everyone that she was showing us to Bella's room and led us down the hall. We passed the nurse's station and I could hear the whispers and gasps. I cringed and was slightly afraid of what was going to happen. I thought back to the stories I'd heard about Cedars-Sinai in L.A. where nurses and doctors snooped through files and released the information to the press. I could only hope that they had more decency in New York, but I doubted it.

Alice knocked on the door and opened it without waiting for anyone to answer. My eyes immediately fell to the hospital bed. Bella looked awful. She was extremely pale and had dark bags under her eyes.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Emmett asked. My eyes left Bella's body and focused on him.

"We were asked to come, so here we are," I shrugged. I certainly didn't need to offer this asshole any information.

"It doesn't matter. When Bella wakes up, which should be any minute, she'll be happy that Edward and Jasper are here," Alice chimed in.

"Edward, good to see you again," Jake said as he stood up to shake my hand. "I'm sorry it's not under better circumstances," he added with a frown. I took a closer look at him, and he too had the same dark bags under his eyes.

"I am very sorry for your loss. Bella told me how close you guys were growing up," I offered. Jake simply nodded and rubbed the palms of his hands over his eyes.

"I'm gonna go check on Renee and Billy." Jake stood up and shuffled out. "Let me know when she comes around," he called out over his shoulder. I watched him walk away, his shoulders slumped. He looked nothing like the confident baseball player I had seen a few weeks ago at the premiere. I took the chair Jake had been sitting in and saw I was directly facing a scowling Emmett.

"So what, you guys are a thing now?" he asked.

"I really don't think this is the time or the place to discuss anything personal with you," I sighed closing my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. "You and Bella aren't together anymore and I really don't see how it is any of your business." I kept my eyes closed and put my head back on the chair.

"You flew the across the country to be with Bella when it was my future father in law who just passed away. I do think it's my business," he snapped.

I opened my eyes and stared at him. Who the hell did he think he was? It was clear that he took in Maria's theory on self-righteousness.

"Edward?" I heard Bella's voice. "What the hell are you doing here?" I heard a mechanical noise and saw she was trying to sit up.

I moved from the chair and sat at the side of her bed. I took her hand in mine and looked down at the ground. I saw Emmett smirk out of the corner of my eye.

"Alice asked us to come and be here for you. Is that okay? We can leave if you'd like," I offered but internally I was praying that she didn't want me to go.

"No, no I want you here, thank you so much for coming." She gave me a small smile and then surprised me when she threw her arms around my shoulders. "Ow! What the fuck is this?" She looked down at her hand.

"They had to give you an IV, Bells," Alice said. I had nearly forgotten she was there. "You passed out when you heard them…uhm…call the T.O.D. on Charlie," she said quietly. "Dr. Cheney gave you and Renee a small sedative to help you calm down."

"Oh," she said.

I watched her expression change as she processed the information. Her eyes welled with tears and her shoulders began to shake. She pulled me closer and sobbed into my shirt. I wrapped my arms around her to try and soothe her. I glanced over to Jasper who had tears in his eyes as well. He had always been empathetic to his surroundings. He absorbed the emotions coming from other people, and at this moment he was feeling Bella's heartache.

"Alice," Jasper said in a low voice.

Alice nodded and said that she was going to show him to the cafeteria so they could grab us some coffee. Emmett remained seated in his chair looking torn between ripping my head off and crying.

"Emmett, would you please leave?" Bella asked. He looked a little shocked, but nodded and left silently.

Bella pulled back and looked at me, then gave me another small smile, "I'm so glad you're here. The entire time while we were waiting for the doctor all I could think about was how I wanted you here."

"I'm here now," I said brushing a piece of hair out of her eyes. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No." She shook her head and started sobbing again. I pulled her in close in an attempt to help calm her down. I would have done anything to make her feel better; all she had to do was ask. It was odd to see her in such a vulnerable state. The Bella that I was used to seeing was fierce, independent, strong and usually had a smile on her face. Until today, the most I'd ever seen her upset was the day she told me about her arrangement with Emmett, and while it was something personal, it wasn't nearly as important as her mourning the loss of her father.

I eventually shifted so that I was lying down beside her with her curled in my arms. I glanced at my watch and saw we had been alone for at least a couple of hours. Her breathing had evened out for the most part with an occasional hiccup or sob, so I knew she was asleep. I slipped out of her grasp and walked down to the waiting area. I saw that only Jasper and Alice were there.

"Where's Renee and everyone else?" I asked.

"They left a while ago. Renee wanted to shower and change. She said that she needed to make some phone calls and whatnot," Alice said and rolled her eyes.

"She's a real piece of work isn't she?" Jasper asked.

"That's nothing," Alice said. "According to Bella, when they first found out Charlie's prognosis, Renee actually came onto the doctor," she grimaced.

My jaw dropped. Bella hadn't been joking when she said that her mother and Maria were unlike any other parents. If I hadn't been appalled earlier by her behavior then, I certainly was now.

"The doctor said that as long as we make sure Bella eats and gets some rest, she can go home at any time," Jasper said.

"Uh oh," I heard Alice murmur.

"What?" I asked.

"Uhm, I just realized that Emmett and Bella have both arranged to stay at their old apartment. Apparently Emmett didn't sell the place. Both of their bags are there."

"Wouldn't Bella want to stay with Renee anyway?" Jasper asked. "I'm sure Renee will want her only daughter around for support."

Alice sighed and nodded, "You're probably right. Unfortunately, it won't be for support. The only reason Renee is going to want Bella around is when the press and the other society women come to pay their condolences. She's going to want to look like the perfect mother and widow."

It was Jasper's turn to look shocked. As he stared at me, I gave him a slight nod indicating I agreed with him. I told them that I was going back to wake up Bella and see if she was ready to go home. When I got back to her room, she was still sleeping. I hated to wake her knowing that she needed to sleep, but she also needed to eat.

I gently woke her up and she agreed that she was finally hungry and ready to eat something other than hospital food. After she was discharged we snuck out the back of the hospital and into a waiting town car. Bella ran up and grabbed her bags from her old place and told the driver to take us back to Renee's apartment. We dropped Alice and Jasper off at Alice's apartment which wasn't too far from Renee's. They promised to meet up with us later. Jasper said he'd grab my stuff and bring it by.

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence. Bella just stared out the window. Occasionally I would see a tear run down her face before she could wipe it away. I didn't bother trying to engage her in conversation since I didn't know what to say. We finally pulled up to a large and elegant building on Madison Avenue.

"Fuck," she muttered. I turned to see what she was talking about. There were reporters everywhere. This wasn't going to be good. She banged on the partition and called for the driver. "Would you park around the back? Why are we in the front?"

"The other entry is blocked due to road construction, ma'am. This is the only way in or out for the next couple of weeks," he apologized.

"You ready for this?" she asked. I nodded. She slid on a pair of sunglasses and moved towards the door, waiting for the driver to come around. When the it opened, the camera flashes were blinding. Almost immediately people were yelling Bella's name, asking her how she was doing. I took a deep breath and stepped out of the car behind her. For a split second there was silence. The flashes stopped as well as the yelling and the stupid questions. Once the press registered who I was and that I was with Bella, the flashes became even worse and the yelling just got louder.

I came behind Bella and put my hand on the small of her back and led her into the building. Neither of us said anything as I guided her to the elevators and rode to the penthouse. Wordlessly, Bella and I walked to her old bedroom and she collapsed on the bed. I sat down next to her and rubbed her back. She lifted her head and stared at me.

"Hey," I said softly.

She peered at me over the top of her sunglasses and said, "Hey."

"Can I get you anything?" I offered.

"No," she sighed. "I need to take a shower. I wanna get this hospital smell off of me."

"Okay." I stood up and made my way to the bathroom. I turned on the hot water and located a couple of towels for her and placed them on the toilet. "I'll step out for a bit, okay?"

"Promise you won't leave?" she asked.

I was stunned. Why on earth would she think that I would leave her?

"Bella, I'm not going anywhere until you order me away." I smiled at her, crossed the room and gave her a hug. I pulled back and looked into her eyes. I hadn't realized until now how swollen and red they had gotten from crying and my heart broke for her all over again.

"I came out here for you, so unless you tell me otherwise, I'm not going anywhere. Okay?"

"Okay," she whispered. "Thank you, Edward. You really don't know how much this means to me."

I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Go take a shower and then you need to eat something."

She nodded and pulled away, heading towards the bathroom. I left her to take her shower and realized I was starving. I went into the kitchen and flipped on the lights. I was stunned to see Renee sitting at the breakfast bar fiddling with her wedding bands. I had thought we were all alone; I had no idea she had come home.

Feeling uncomfortable and unsure of what to say, I offered to make a pot of coffee. She nodded, but didn't say anything. I leaned against the counter and studied the kitchen. It was amazing. The floors were clearly an expensive type of marble, they had all stainless steel Viking appliances, a green and blue glass mosaic tiled backsplash along with a dark green granite countertop. I didn't cook very often because Jasper and I tended to eat out or party a lot, but I did love to cook and this kitchen was awesome.

"Charlie loves to cook. This kitchen was built for him and Bella," Renee said softly. It didn't escape my attention that she was referring to him in the present tense. "He always says that I could burn water and he's afraid I'll burn the house down. I'm all alone now. I have no husband and my daughter barely speaks to me." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Karma's a bitch isn't it?" she asked rhetorically.

I stayed silent, still unsure of what to say. "Enjoy the coffee, Edward."

She stood up and walked out of the kitchen. I was stunned by her admissions.

Once the coffee was ready, I poured two cups and headed towards Bella's bedroom. I noticed it had been almost twenty minutes she had been in the shower.

I knocked gently on the door, "Bella? Are you almost done?" I asked.

No response.

I slowly opened the door and my heart dropped at the sight before me. Bella sat in the middle of the shower, soaking wet, still fully dressed. She had balled herself up and had drawn her knees to her chest. Her eyes were still red and swollen.

"Bella," I called to her. "Bella, c'mon, let's get you out of these clothes okay?" I reached in the shower and turned off the water.

"Edward?" She sniffled as she finally noticed my presence.

"We need to get you out of these clothes or you're going to get sick okay?" She nodded in response. I stepped inside the shower, stood her up, and started peeling off her layers. This was the first chance I would get to see Bella naked and I wished it were under much different circumstances. I took off her clothes and threw them in a wet pile on the tiled floor.

I had stripped her down to just her panties and bra and I was trying like hell to ignore the fact that they were fucking transparent. I cursed at myself when I felt a familiar tightening in my jeans. This was probably the worst possible time for me to get hard. I leaned out of the shower to grab a towel, but Bella grabbed my hand and stopped me.

She turned the water back on and moved the showerhead towards me. "Edward," she said in a husky tone. She reached to me and began to unbutton my shirt. As the buttons came apart, she started lightly kissing the hollow of my throat, working her way down.

"Bella," I choked, "I don't think this is such a good idea."

"Don't you want me, Edward?" she asked as she continued her oral assault.

"Of course I do, but Bella, not like this." I closed my eyes and felt a slight tugging. I heard the clinking of metal and knew she was undoing my belt. My jeans were getting heavier from the shower and it was taking all the self-control I had not to yank them off. Her hand slid down the front of my jeans and she cupped me roughly. I fought back a groan as my eyes rolled back.

She looked at me through her lashes and sighed. "I just need to feel. For the past twenty-four hours my body has felt like it has gone on an emotional lockdown. I want to feel something other than the sadness. I need to think about something other than the fact I don't have a father anymore. I need you, Edward. Please help me."

She buried her head in my chest and began sobbing again. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her in closer. My hands began rubbing her back and between the warmth of the water and the smoothness of her skin, my resolve was cracking. And fast.

I didn't want our first time, now that I knew there was going to be a first and hopefully not a last time, to be in the shower a day after Charlie died. If we were going to do this, we were going to do it right.

"Bella, let's get you out of the shower and then we'll talk, okay?"

She nodded and turned the water off. I reached back for the towels and handed one to Bella. She stepped out of the shower and looked at me expectantly. "No way, Swan. Turn around," I said motioning with my fingers for her to spin around. "There will be no free milk today."

"Did you just call yourself a cow?" she snorted. And then she smiled. It was the first real smile I had seen on her since I had come to New York.

"Why yes, yes I did. Now turn around please, you aren't the only one who's drenched here," I lightly teased.

"I'm definitely wet," she murmured as her eyes roved over my body. Her double meaning was not lost on me. I bit the inside of my cheek to give myself a moment before changing my mind and taking her against the bathroom door. She turned around and slipped out the bathroom and into her bedroom. I sighed and ran my fingers through my hair. I knew we needed to talk, but I wasn't sure what we were going to talk about. There were several very strong emotions in the air.

I quickly stripped down to my boxers which were slightly damp. Bella's body had covered that area for the most part. As I stepped out of the bathroom I realized that I didn't have any clothes to change into. The bedroom was dark but my eyes were able to focus quickly to Bella lying in the bed dressed in a set of short shorts and a t-shirt. I ran my hand through my hair and tried to figure out what to do.

I didn't figure Renee to be the type of person to do her own laundry so I there had to be a laundry room of some sort for the staff. I quickly gathered my clothes and I went off to begin my search for a dryer until I heard Bella call my name. I dropped everything, ran to her bedroom, and knelt down at her side. I tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear and saw that she was awake.

"What can I do for you, Bella?"

"Lay with me, please?" she whispered.

"I will as soon as I find something to wear," I whispered back.

"Hang on a second." She got out of bed and left the bedroom, returning with a pair of sweatpants and t-shirt. I looked at her quizzically. "These are Jake's. When he was younger he used to crash here after a night of partying if he didn't want a lecture from Billy. He practically had his own room here." She shrugged her shoulders and climbed back into bed. I quickly threw on the clothes and climbed in next to her.

I glanced at the clock and saw that it was a little past midnight. I was surprised at how fast the past two days had gone by. Sleep took us over quickly.

At least it did for me.

For Bella, not so much.

Bella Swan

It was a little after two in the morning when I woke up. My eyes were slightly crusted over and I could feel the sadness take over again. I looked to my right and saw Edward sleeping soundly. I don't know how I would have been able to get through the past couple days without him.

I wanted to remind myself that I could feel something other than sadness. He had rejected me in the shower and I knew I was wrong for throwing myself at him, but I also knew he wanted me just as badly as I wanted him.

He looked so peaceful and vulnerable in his sleep. I felt like a lioness stalking her prey. I maneuvered myself so that I was curled into him. My traveled under his shirt and for the first time I got to really feel him. My fingers traced the slight muscle definitions from his chest to his belly button. I leaned over him and began placing light kisses along his collar bone and the groove where his shoulder met his neck. I ran my tongue on the same path as my kisses and blew cool air along the trail causing him to shiver.

"Bella," he half-moaned.

"Yes, Edward?" I asked with all the innocence that I could muster.

"Please don't do this," he begged and squeezed his eyes tighter.

"Do what?" I asked as I ran my fingers down past his navel and traced the 'v' on his hipbones. I stretched my body along his and kissed his mouth. I let my lips linger, waiting for a response. He let out a small moan and began to kiss me back. I traced his bottom lip with my tongue. He moaned and thrust his hips.

My fingers traced his hipbones again, going lower this time. I reached a taut band of muscles lightly dusted with curly hair when he grabbed my hand to stop me.

"Please don't do this." He squeezed my hand tighter and let go. Realization hit me. He didn't want me after all. I thought men liked to be woken up with the assurance of sex. He was here out of pity, not because he cared for me. I could feel the tears that I thought had dried up come back all at once.

Edward immediately shot up and pulled me into his lap. He shifted slightly to make himself more comfortable. "Shhh, it'll be okay. I promise it will get easier with time," he assured me.

"I'm not crying because of Charlie," I snapped. "Not this time. You don't want me. I could understand that I looked like a fucking mess in the shower, but I'm not like that now and you still reject me."

"You think I don't want you?" His eyes were wide with shock.

"It's pretty clear you don't. You've barely touched me with the exception of trying to comfort me. I don't want you to pity me. I want you to fuck me," I huffed.

"Jesus Christ, Bella! You've got to be joking! I don't pity you in the slightest. I came out here because I thought you'd need someone to support you and to be a person to lean on. I came out here because I fucking care about you. If you think I don't want to fuck you, then you are sorely mistaken. It has taken just about every bit of self-control I have not to take advantage of you when you tempt me like that."

He shifted me off his lap and sat me so we were sitting cross-legged and facing each other.

"The reason I haven't tried anything is because when we finally are intimate I want there to be a positive association with it. I don't want you to look back and remember that the first time we had sex was a few days before your dad's funeral!"

I gasped at his admission. I sat and stared at him; I wondered what I had done in a previous life to deserve someone like Edward.

"You deserve better than that, we deserve better than that," he said with a softer tone. His eyes were pleading for me to understand. "Make no mistake about me wanting you ever again, okay?" I nodded, but I still needed him to answer some questions.

"So if we aren't going to be having sex anytime soon," I said looking down at the bedspread, "is there anything else we can be doing?"

"You're serious, aren't you?" he choked back a laugh.

"Edward, let me put it to you this way." I gathered all the courage I could and continued, "I agree with you and I see your point that the timing is less than ideal. However, I have been single for almost three months. I know you can feel the chemistry between us, and all I ask is that you don't deny me. I really don't think I could handle it and just because I'm mourning a loss doesn't mean I don't have other needs." I stressed the word need hoping he would get it.

I studied his face for any reaction at all; I got nothing, only a blank face. I noticed that his lips twitched and he narrowed his eyes.

"You have needs?" he asked with a slight smirk. His voice was low with a tinge of something I couldn't quite place my finger on.

"I know I have needs, just as I know you have needs," I replied. I wanted to look away from his green eyes, but I couldn't. The intensity and mood in the air had shifted from uneasiness to lust in a matter of seconds.

"Oh, I have needs alright, but I'm more concerned with yours, seeing as how your needs are the reason you've thrown yourself at me twice today," he said and leaned forward, our faces only inches apart. "What are the needs that you want me to take care of for you, Isabella?" He leaned forward more as I leaned backward, eventually settling on my elbows as he towered over me, his body nearly parallel to mine. I shifted my legs so they were on either side of his body.

"Is this what you want me to do for you, Isabella?" he asked as he pressed his body to mine and ground his pelvis into me. I gasped. I could feel the heat radiating from him through the thin sweatpants.

"Or maybe you wanted this?" he suggested when he leaned down and grazed his nose and lips over my nipples, lightly nipping with his lips.

"So tell me, Isabella, what do you want me to do?" His eyes were almost black, feral-looking. It scared me, but I had never been more aroused in my entire life. He shifted his position and ran his nose along my jaw to my earlobe. He lightly bit and sucked on my ear before tracing the outer part with his tongue. I felt his hand wrap around my waist and pull my body closer to his.

I couldn't think. I knew what I wanted him to do, but I couldn't say it. My body screamed for him to touch me, to fill me, to do whatever the hell he wanted to do. I didn't care. I couldn't find it in myself to give a damn what he did as long as it was Edward who was doing it.

"I want you to touch me," I whispered.

"Where?" he breathed in my ear.

"Everywhere."

I heard him exhale and slowly move his hand from my waist and trail down my side to my thigh. He pulled his body back and began running both his hands firmly up and down my legs.

"Is this how you want me to touch you?" He smirked at me, smug bastard.

"No. I want you to touch me here." I grabbed his hand, letting his fingers trail along my inner thigh, leading his palm to ghost over my apex. "And I want you to touch me here." I grabbed his other hand and placed it firmly on my breast. I heard him take a deep breath and slowly exhale again.

"As you wish," he murmured. He leaned forward and shifted his body so that he was lying on his side next to me. I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him in for a deep kiss. I needed the contact desperately and was greatly relieved when he kissed me back with a forcefulness that I had never felt from him. I let out a low moan and shifted as I felt his hand still resting between my legs. It was as if my sounds reminded him of his position and he used the heel of his palm to grind against my clit. Then he bent his fingers and stroked the rest of me.

"Edward," I said between gasps of breath, "I want you to touch me, not my pajamas." He slipped his into my panties and I groaned when he reached his destination.

"Bare, Bella? I wouldn't have guessed that," he said against my lips.

I pulled back, "that's okay?"

"It's more than okay," he kissed me again. His hand resumed its position. This time his finger was tracing me as his palm lightly moved in circles over my clit once again. He slipped one finger in and I gasped.

"Jesus fuck me you feel good," he cried. He instantly slipped a second digit in causing me to moan. He slowly moved his two fingers in and out of me. He bent his head lower and began to suck on my nipple through my thin t-shirt causing me to moan louder.

"Edward!" I called out as I began to grind against his hand. "Please," I begged him, "please make me come." His speed increased; I could feel him curl his fingers inside me, hitting that sweet spot. A few strokes later I felt the swirling fire building in my abdomen and working its way down. He rubbed more furiously, and my orgasm was building quickly.

"Jesus, Bella you're beautiful," he growled in my ear. "I need you to come, I need to see it." The vibrations from his chest and from his growl were the final snapping point. I squeezed my eyes shut and arched my back as I ground into his hand. I saw stars, as every nerve-ending came alive. I called out his name over and over again. It was one of the most intense orgasms I had ever experienced.

Coming down from my high, I was sure of one thing. Whatever Edward Masen did with his hands, I wanted him to do it again. If he could do that with just his hand, the prospect of us doing anything more both scared and excited the hell out of me.

I half expected him get out of bed and wash his hands, since that was what Emmett had always done. When Edward pulled his hand away he made sure I was watching him and slowly slid each finger in and out of his mouth. "Delicious," was all he could say.

"Thank you," I said moving around the bed to my original position.

"There's no need to thank me. I've wanted to do that since I first laid eyes on you," he admitted.

"Really?"

"Yes, really," he laughed. "Now is not the time for that discussion. Now is the time for sleep. Unfortunately you have another big day tomorrow and you're going to need your energy."

I was sad that he brought up Charlie. I had been so happy. For a brief time I had forgotten about the sadness that was starting to creep back into my chest.

"Hey," he whispered. He pulled his body into me. "Don't go there, okay? Dream about how magically talented my fingers are and I will dream about how beautiful you are when you come undone like that."

This time when I closed my eyes, sleep quickly over overtook me before the sadness could, and I was grateful for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, it's me again.
> 
> Some fic rec's that have been owning me lately:
> 
> Open Mic Night by Skeezon...honestly, anything by her is awesome.
> 
> Accidental Atonement-IdPattThat


	14. It's Just Goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A HUGE thank you goes out to the rabid kitten known as Irritable_Grizzzly who helped me get this story back on track as well as point out some huge plot errors I had made previously. No words can even describe how much I appreciate all that you have done. Whenever (not if we ever) we get to Vegas, drinks are on me.
> 
> As usual: Characters belong to SM, plot is mine, stealing isn't very nice.

Edward Masen

I fell asleep with Bella in my arms and a nasty case of blue balls, but despite the circumstances, neither of us stirred in our sleep. At least I didn't. I woke up but kept my eyes shut. I stretched my hand across the bed hoping to pull her small body towards mine. She wasn't there.

I woke up alone.

Again.

This shit really needed to fucking stop.

Bella Swan

Death makes you feel and do things. If a month ago someone had told me that I would be trying to get in Edward's pants days after Charlie died, I would have told them they were fucking crazy. Was I really that demented to want to feel something other than the sadness that was all around me? It had only been two and a half days and I was ready to scream in frustration. I was frustrated emotionally, professionally and personally.

My emotions were all over the fucking place. I couldn't feel just one thing at a time. Not being able to get a read on my own emotions or be in control of something as personal as my own feelings, did not make me happy.

I felt like I'd run out of tears and just when I thought I couldn't cry any more, I did. I hated being back in New York; it made me realize how much I had taken to L.A. being my home. The only thing left for me here was Renee, and that's another fucking story all its own.

Professionally I was freaking the fuck out. I had never considered taking Charlie's place as head of the company, or even sitting on the board. I love what I do. The thought of doing Charlie's job made my head hurt on many levels. I knew I could never he did. Alice had been fielding my calls and emails for the past few days and made a mental note that I would have to do something incredibly sweet to show my thanks for her thoughtfulness.

My personal life seemed to be the only good thing right now. If I put the passing of my father aside, being with Edward made me feel like I deserved to be happy, and that I was meant for more than being a piece of arm candy. He treated me like I was something special to him and not a shiny new pet. He made me want to do things for myself and put myself first. Oddly enough, that was one of the things Emmett never asked of me. For all the shit Renee and Maria handed me over the years, it was partially my own fault for never saying anything to them. I'd resolved that I'd no longer be a doormat and if I didn't like something, I would speak up.

That didn't necessarily transfer over to my doing things for my own personal benefit, but Edward did. I was finally ready to move on from my old life and wash off the grime of New York and enjoy what the west coast had to offer me.

A part of me was sad that I couldn't share this revelation with my mother. She thought I would stay near her in the city. She thought moving out to California was a phase. Renee would never listen. She was an entity all her own. Instead of mourning his death, Renee sat in the kitchen all hours of the night trying to figure out how to turn his passing into a socialite cocktail hour.

When I woke up in Edward's arms I knew that last night hadn't been a dream and I was glad for it. The sexual tension that had been building between us had finally come to some kind of breaking point. It wasn't to where I wanted it yet, but considering that Edward had flown across the country to be with me, I wasn't about to push things any further.

I slipped out from Edward's grip, feeling slightly bad for leaving him alone in bed for the second day in a row. I heard noises coming from the kitchen and figured that if someone was up there was a good chance coffee had already been brewed.

Entering the kitchen, I saw Renee sitting at the table chattering on the phone about a dress to wear to the wake tomorrow, and the funeral the day after. She was demanding that she be the only person in that dress. It took all I had not to throttle her and remind her that at funerals nobody gave a shit what you wore, but knowing Renee she was probably trying to one-up Maria for when Felix dies. There are only so many Christian Dior black dresses, and knowing my mother, she would buy them all and then offer to loan one to Maria.

She saw me out of the corner of her eye and quickly hung up the phone.

"How did you sleep, Belly?" she asked.

"Don't call me Belly and I slept just fine." I took a sip of coffee and avoided looking at her. "How did you sleep?" I asked, not really caring.

"Oh you know me, Belly, a couple of Ambien and I sleep like the dead." She stopped herself when she noticed her verbal slip.

"That's great, Renee, really," I said taking another sip of coffee.

"Oh Belly, I didn't really mean it like that," she said with a slight apologetic tone. "You know the least you can do is refer to me as 'mom' when you're home."

"Are you kidding me?" My eyes shot up to hers. I took a brief moment to realize she lied about how she slept. Dark circles and bags shadowed her eyes and she actually looked every bit of her fifty-seven years.

"Why would I joke about that? I mean really, Belly-"

"It's Bella," I snapped.

She rolled her eyes. "Bella, what are people going to think when they hear you refer to me as Renee? What would your father say?" She quirked an eyebrow at me.

"That's a low blow, Renee and you know it."

I could feel the peacefulness from early this morning fading and the anger rising to the surface. I hadn't really given it any thought, but if Charlie and Edward had met, I had a feeling they would have liked each other. The thought of never seeing Charlie again hit me hard. I could feel the tears forming in my eyes.

"No, what's a low blow is you bringing that actor here and using him, while Emmett is mourning the loss of your father. Really, Bella, I know you and Emmett are going through a rough patch but we all know you're going to do whatever it takes to make him happy again."

Her nonchalance blew me away. Clearly the woman would never understand me or my life, and she clearly didn't care.

"There is nothing between Emmett and me anymore. If you'd actually pay attention to what I tell you, you would understand this. Edward came to see how I was doing because he cares about me, mother. It shouldn't matter what his profession is. As my parent shouldn't you be concerned with how he treats me and if he makes me happy?"

"I know when my daughter is happy, and you were happy with Emmett," she scoffed.

"No, I really wasn't. The only way you would know I was happy is if you heard it from a nanny. Edward makes me happy." I was on the verge of refusing to continue this conversation, but I couldn't help myself. She was baiting me because I was letting her. It had been a couple of years since we last had a blow-out and we were due for another one. I knew she needed an outlet for her sadness; I just happened to be her portal.

Edward Masen

I heard voices coming from the kitchen and made my way down the hall. I stopped immediately and stood hidden in the hallway when I heard Bella talking to Renee.

"Bella, dear, he's an actor," Renee spat the word 'actor' as if my profession was something to be ashamed of.

"You've said that already. What's your point?" she countered.

"What kind of image does that really give you? You come from a good family. How do you know he isn't after your trust fund or your money? What kind of family does he come from? What do you really know about this boy? How do you know he isn't using you for sex, and will Emmett really want you after you've been tossed aside by your infatuation?"

"Boy? Really, Renee? I find this pretty damn funny coming from you. What was the nickname you were given when you married Charlie? I believe the press called you Rags-to-Riches Renee, does that sound familiar? You have the nerve to talk about Edward being after money, when he made eight figures on his last three films. Get over yourself, seriously. We both know this isn't about money." I could just imagine her crossing her arms over her chest waiting for her mother to say something else.

Renee did not disappoint. "I have worked very hard to cultivate an image for this family and for you. I have only wanted the very best for you, and this is how you thank me? You run around town and don't bother to show any shame in spending time with that boy when Emmett is clearly trying to rekindle your relationship. I will not have you make a fool out of me or your father's memory; especially not now." Renee's voice was firm and had a hard edge to it.

I was floored. I was under the impression that Bella and Emmett were completely through. It would explain why he was protective over her in the hospital but that was it. Surely Bella wouldn't have spent time with me or told me repeatedly that she wanted me here if that were true.

Bella didn't strike me as the type of girl who would let what happened last night happen if she wanted to reconcile with Emmett. It was something completely unexpected and wonderful. I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders by letting her know exactly what my intentions were. It wasn't a matter of if I would ever get to be inside her, but when. The timing for us never seemed to work in our favor; there was always something interrupting us or getting in the way.

Bella finally spoke again bringing me out of my thoughts. "There is absolutely nothing going on between Emmett and me. There hasn't been for a long time, mother, so it would be best for you to get that idea out of your head. I went along with what you and Maria wanted for far too long and I refuse to let your obsession with the press and your 'image' ruin my life any further. I don't know what schemes you two have concocted, but you'd better get them out of your head.

If you want to think ill of Edward, be my guest. I should tell you now that it was his idea for me to stay with you. When I was the one who wanted to stay at a hotel or the loft, he was the one who convinced me that you would need me. I can clearly see that you are handling your grief quite well and I am no longer needed here.

After Edward wakes up we will be leaving and staying at his hotel until it's time for him to go. Don't give me that look, Renee. I will be back here for the wake tomorrow and the funeral the day after so that you may properly portray the grieving widow and I will be the loving daughter you feel you deserve. I will stay until the reading of dad's will, but after that I'll be flying back to L.A. Don't expect to hear from me after the funeral. I'm done with this charade." She was practically yelling at this point. I could only imagine Renee's reactions to Bella's words.

I heard Bella coming down the hall with heavy footsteps and ducked back into the bedroom. She slammed the door behind her.

"How much of that did you hear?" she asked, leaning against the door.

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop," I confessed. "I woke up alone, again and went to look for you. By the way, we need to talk. You can't keep doing that. I'll start to develop a complex."

I didn't want to tell her that my last statement may have been a lie. She crossed the room and I held out my arms for a hug. She walked right into them and wrapped her arms around my waist.

"So how much did you hear?" she asked again.

"I learned that your mother does not think very highly of my chosen profession," I told her. "Apparently I'm a gold digger?"

"Ah, so you only heard the end," she sighed. "I will tell you now that there is nothing happening between Emmett and me. When I ran into him at the airport, it was the first time I'd seen him since the argument you witnessed in the kitchen."

"Bella, you don't owe me any explanations right now," I said. I leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

"Yes, I do. I don't want you to think that after last night I was going to try and work things out with Emmett. Not that we were trying to work things out before. I just mean that I really enjoyed myself and I hope that we … fuck, I'm rambling aren't I?" She looked down at her feet waiting for me to answer.

I chuckled and pulled her tight against me. "I heard you defend me to Renee. Thank you for doing that even though you didn't have to. I enjoyed myself last night too and I hope that we fuck as well." I grinned and winked at her.

"Yes I did and I'll always defend you. You flew across the country to comfort me. You have taken care of me and made sure that all of my needs have been met. I really don't think I could do this without you," she confessed. I noticed she ignored my quip about fucking.

"Your phone went off earlier but I silenced it so you could sleep," she said. She pulled away and pulled out her bags. Then she repacked her toiletries and clothes from yesterday.

I grabbed my phone off the table and saw I had a few missed calls from Jasper. I immediately called him back.

"I was wondering what happened to you," he said as soon as he picked up.

"Yeah, sorry. I just woke up. What's going on?" I asked.

"Have you talked to your girl yet?" he asked. My girl. We hadn't talked about anything officially, but I liked the sound of it. We were too old for the boyfriend/girlfriend labels. I was also turning into a goddamn chick for even thinking that we had to label whatever was going on between us.

"Yeah, what's going on?"

"You aren't going to Vancouver anymore."

"What do you mean? I've been fired? What the fuck is going on?" I fumed. I had never been fired off a film before. I had always been the model actor. I showed up on time with my lines memorized. I never complained about late-night shoots. I was always deemed a fucking golden boy on set.

"No! No you aren't being fired," he said quickly. "Remember how SMG took over because of the douchebag who was stealing money?"

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He's denying the charges. All the records have been taken and the film is being put on hold until all this is cleared up. The producers don't want any negative publicity to be associated with the movie," he said.

"So I'm not being fired?"

"No," he laughed. "You aren't being fired. Listen, Alice and I were talking and we were thinking that it might be a good idea to get Bella out to do something."

"Have you been to her building yet, Jazz? The press is surrounding this place. If they're the sharks, we're the chum." I remembered suddenly that Bella had told Renee we were staying at Jasper's and my hotel. "Hey, are you staying at the hotel or at Alice's?"

"I'm at Alice's place. We have your stuff though." I heard noises in the background. I assumed he was talking to Alice. I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw that Bella was done packing. She was waiting for me to finish my call.

"Let's meet at the hotel in an hour," I suggested.

"Sounds good. We'll see you there. We're checked in under Carlisle's name, so hopefully nobody will catch on."

"Alright, we'll see you in an hour." I hung up the phone and looked over at Bella.

"I guess Jasper told you about the postponing of the film?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah, why didn't you tell me? I would have liked a little heads-up about not having a job for the next six weeks," I snapped. As soon as the words left my mouth I instantly regretted it. My tone was harsher than I expected.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She waved her hands around and gave a sarcastic eye roll. "I guess I've been a little busy with my father dying and all." She looked as if I had slapped her face.

"Bella, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out that way," I pleaded. "I was just caught off-guard, that's all. I promise I'm not mad at you."

She sighed. "I know you're not. I'm sorry for snapping like that. I'm just a little geared up today. After this morning with Renee-" She motioned towards the door. "I'm a little stressed. I have to pick out Charlie's suit later and bring it down to the funeral home. Renee said that she didn't want to be seen doing something so morbid," she snorted in disgust.

"Come here," I said holding out my arms again. Just like earlier, she walked right into my embrace. After a few moments I could feel my shirt getting damp and her shoulders were shaking. "Hey," I whispered, "what's wrong?" I instantly felt like a fucking idiot. Her father just died and her mother was a narcissistic bitch in denial and I had just asked her what was wrong. I had never felt like more of a fucking idiot than at that moment. It was the equivalent of asking the Super Bowl winning quarterback how they felt. It's pretty fucking obvious. Bella, however, was holding herself together better than I would have expected.

"I just don't understand how she can be like this," she sobbed into my chest. "I mean, they were married for almost thirty-five years. I know she loved him, but how can she not want to do these things for him? Why doesn't she care? I just wish just for once that she stopped thinking about her image and public perception. For once why can't I just have a normal mom?" She cried even harder.

I was at a loss as to what to say. My parents were fuck-ups in their own right, but never to this extent. If anything they were the exact opposite of Bella's family. Ed and Liz despised the media and if it became widespread knowledge that Tanya was my half-sister as the result of Ed Senior's affair, his career would be destroyed and Liz's reputation in the L.A. upper-crust would be toast (pun intended).

I wasn't sure what else to do, so I figured the next best thing would be to get her to the person who would – Alice. "We're supposed to meet Jasper and Alice at the hotel in an hour, okay?" I felt her nod against my chest. She pulled back and wiped her eyes.

"Sorry about that," she hiccupped.

"Don't worry about it." I rubbed her shoulders. "You've had a very stressful week. There is nothing to be sorry for." She nodded again in response. I placed a soft kiss on her forehead and nudged her with my shoulder that we needed to get moving.

After calling Embry, the Swan's family driver, and doing a quick check around the room, we were walking towards the front door when we heard a throat clear behind us.

We both turned simultaneously to see Renee staring at us with wide eyes.

"You're actually leaving?" she asked, looking surprised.

"Yes, we are. I will let you know where we're staying when we get there. I'm sure if you call Cindy Adams or click on TMZ in a matter of hours you'll find out for yourself," Bella said bitterly.

"Bella…" I said softly. I rubbed her back hoping to calm her down.

"No, Edward. Just…don't. Okay? Please stay out of this," she begged and stepped out of my reach. "Embry will be bringing Alice, and I will be back later today to pick out a suit and have it delivered to the funeral home. You won't even know we're here."

"Belly," Renee began.

"It's Bella!" she yelled. "Get my fucking name right, Renee. You do remember giving it to me, don't you? Or did you let the nanny do that too?"

"Isabella," Renee tried again, this time her tone was harsh.

"Oh good, she remembers," Bella muttered sarcastically. Thankfully we were interrupted by the buzzer indicating that the driver had pulled around to the back.

"Embry's here," Bella stated. "I'll make sure to use the back entrance, unless of course you'd like the media to see me like this, sleep-deprived and pissed off?" Bella raised her eyebrows at her mother. She was met with silence.

Bella picked up her bags and walked out the front door. I shot Renee an apologetic look. I knew she was hurting in so many ways. I wanted to tell Bella what happened last night in the kitchen but felt it would as if I was violating the unspoken trust she had in me.

"I'm really sorry we had to meet under these circumstances, Mrs. Swan." I was almost out the door when I heard Renee call my name.

I turned back and the look on her face was almost heartbreaking. "Please take care of her. Do what she won't let me do and be there for her."

"I will," I promised. With a short nod of her head and a flick of her wrist she turned and left the entry hall. I had just been dismissed.

Bella Swan

I was halfway to the service elevator when I noticed Edward wasn't next to me. I turned back to see him softly shut the door. He kept his focus on the ground and ran his hands roughly through his hair. I knew Renee must have said something to him and I had contemplated asking but changed my mind and made a mental note to ask him later. I was too wired from the "discussion" to say anything about her; if I did, I might lose what little bit of my sanity I had left.

He quickly caught up to me as we made our way down the hall. We were silent from the time we entered the elevator to when we got into the town car in the garage. I wasn't quite sure how to start a conversation. I felt the need to apologize for Renee's behavior but the woman didn't give a damn about me so why I should I try to get Edward to see her in a better light? After the reading of the will, I would fly back to L.A. with Edward, Alice and Jasper and never look back. For the rest of the drive to the hotel we were quiet. Occasionally I would glance over at Edward who seemed to be lost in his thoughts.

I heard someone talking but didn't really pay attention until I felt Edward gently shaking my leg.

"Bella," Edward said, "we're here."

"Where?" I asked.

"Uhm, at my hotel. Alice and Jasper are running a bit late but should be here in a few." He paused, and then spoke again. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just zoned out for a minute, sorry."

I offered a weak smile and received one in return. I looked out the window for any potential photographers and was relieved to see an almost empty street. I glanced up at the hotel and snorted.

"The Four Seasons?" I looked at Edward out of the corner of my eye.

He shrugged his shoulders and looked out the window. "It was all Jasper. You gotta admit it does seem to hold a bit of meaning," he chuckled. "As much as I like sitting in a car with you, I can't help but think we'd be more comfortable if we went in," he suggested.

"Miss Swan, are you ready?" Embry asked.

"Yeah, let's go." I replied. Embry quickly got out of the car and opened my door. I poked my head out and double-checked that nobody was following us. I quickly exited the car, followed by Edward, and walked into the main hall of the hotel. We received an occasional curious glance as Embry followed us with my bags. Quietly and quickly Edward checked us in under Carlisle's name and we were escorted to the elevators by the hotel's general manager. I couldn't help but internally roll my eyes.

"Are you sure we'll be all right here?" I quietly asked Edward.

"We'll be fine," he murmured back. "Besides," his voice rose to a normal speaking level, "if word gets out who's staying here I'm sure there won't be any problem finding out who leaked the information and they'll lose their job." His eyes bored into the back of the manager's head and I saw his shoulders stiffen slightly.

Given the circumstances of why we were here, I still couldn't help but feel a little aroused. Last night I had fallen asleep almost immediately only knowing the feeling of peacefulness and contentment. I was surprised by the other feelings that followed my arousal. I felt guilt, sadness, and then guilt again.

Guilty because I needed to be thinking about Charlie, or at least I should be. Sadness because the moment I thought about Charlie in any way I would remember that he was gone and he wasn't coming back. I couldn't call him anymore if I had a silly thought or needed his advice on a business matter. I felt the pang of guilt hit me again, but I wasn't too sure what it was for. All I knew was that I didn't like it and I would do almost anything to make it go away. I wanted to make all the feelings go away. Somehow Edward was like my personal mind eraser.

We settled into the room and were assured by our host that we were guaranteed absolute privacy. It didn't escape my notice that the room only had one king-size bed, but I decided not to think about it at the moment. I lay back on the bed and closed my eyes. I could instantly feel my body relax and as I wondered if I had enough time for a nap, I fell asleep.

Edward Masen

The moment we walked in the room, Bella flopped down on the bed and closed her eyes. I wasn't sure if she had fallen asleep or just relaxing, but either way she needed to rest. It didn't matter that it wasn't even noon. It was pretty clear she was exhausted physically and mentally. It seemed as if everything lately was draining her of energy.

Jasper sent a text that he and Alice were on their way up to the room. I stood in the hallway to wait for them so that they wouldn't wake up Bella. I turned my attention towards the elevator when I heard it chime and I couldn't help but laugh at the sight in front of me.

I saw a very red-faced Jasper was not only lugging my bag, but his, and was followed by a hotel employee pushing a cart with what appeared to be three suitcases belonging to Alice. Alice was carrying her purse and typing on her Blackberry.

"Hey guys," I called out once they were within earshot. I got a nod from Jasper and he held up a finger as he set the bags down trying to catch his breath. "Bella's sleeping, so just take it easy on her." I eyed Alice, letting her know that was directed at her.

"That's fine. We'll get settled in our room." Alice waved her hand as she spoke, not even looking up from her PDA.

She continued, "I figured if things got a little too heavy and you two needed space, Jasper could stay with you and Bella would crash with me." This time she looked at me. I was shocked to see her eyes were bloodshot and despite her makeup, there were very evident dark circles under her eyes.

"How is she?" Jasper finally spoke up. The color to his face had returned, or rather the redness was almost gone.

"I dunno." I shrugged. "Sometimes it seems she's doing okay and then suddenly she breaks down crying."

I felt defeated. I had come all this way to show her support and that I cared, but yet I wasn't able to do anything. I couldn't take her sadness away and I couldn't repair the fucked up relationship she had with Renee. I felt useless. So far the only positive thing I'd done for her was get her off and as much as I thoroughly enjoyed that, it wasn't what I thought I'd be doing when I flew to New York. Come to think of it, I had no fucking clue what I was supposed to be doing here.

"So listen, standing in the hallway is great, but we need to get this shit into our room," Jasper said after a few people tripped over the bags, earning us nasty glares. "We're a few doors down." He motioned in the direction of his room.

"Call us when she wakes up. We need to finalize some plans for the next few days."

Alice pocketed her PDA and reached for her bag. She let out a loud sigh and her shoulders slumped as she made her way to their room. Ever since we had heard of Charlie's condition, I had only thought about Bella. I hadn't stopped to think about everyone else his death would affect. Alice and Jacob were practically Bella's siblings. I thought it was so strong of Alice Alice to continue handling Bella's business for her. She hadn't been able to properly grieve Charlie's death.

I went back in the room and saw Bella was still sleeping. I took the opportunity to slip into the shower and finally wash off days of grime and dirt. It had been at least two days since I had been able to wash my hair. Actors I'd worked with in the past would poke fun at my supposed lack of hygiene, but in reality if I went more than 18 hours without a shower, it would drive me bat-shit crazy.

I felt the tension slowly subside as the hot water hit my muscles. Being in this shower was different than the night before when I picked up Bella off the floor. This time I was alone, the water was still warm, and I didn't have any clothes on. Last night, seeing Bella in the shower was not the fantasy I'd had so many times and I could only hope that the next time we were in the shower together, it would be under different circumstances.

I couldn't help but harden at the thought of Bella and me grinding against each other, trying to gain friction despite the slickness of soap between us. I braced myself against the shower wall with one hand and I firmly grabbed myself with the other. I didn't bother to hold back a groan at how sensitive I was and began slowly stroking myself from base to tip. It had been over two days since I'd had any type of release and the thought of coming in, on or near Bella, was enough to send me over the edge. I quickly finished the rest of my shower routine and made sure that all physical evidence of my Bella fantasy had been washed away.

After getting dressed in the bathroom, I quietly passed through the bedroom, trying carefully not to wake Bella. My efforts were useless when I glanced over and saw her shirt had been pushed to her tits, exposing her flat stomach and I could see the underside of her cleavage causing me to stub my toe and yell obscenities.

"Edward?" Her voice was hoarse.

I turned around, a bit embarrassed for waking her up. "Hey." I gave her a weak wave. I fucking waved at her. I am officially a fucking idiot. Who the fuck waves at someone after waking them up? I walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. She sat up and quickly fixed her shirt and looked up at me with a sheepish grin.

One thing I noticed about Bella was that she wore her emotions out on her sleeve. I considered her honesty a breath of fresh air. So many L.A. people become artificial in a matter of months in order rise to the top. Bella wasn't like that.

I remembered about a year ago meeting a hot little brunette who just had work done but was still new to the area. I had every intention of taking her home and giving her the fuck of her life until I complimented her tits and she blushed. Thank god Bella didn't blush.

"What time is it?" She glanced around for a clock.

"You haven't been sleeping too long, it's only noon. Jasper and Alice are getting settled down the hall. Do you think you'd be up for lunch before you finish at Renee's?" She blanched at the sound of her mother's name.

"I'm not really hungry," she said.

"That was a rhetorical question. You need to eat. You have the choice if you want Jasper and me with you, or just Alice," I informed her.

"Oh." She let out a sigh and threw her body back on the pillows. "I guess I can't stay holed up forever. Alright, but I know exactly what I want."

Bella Swan

I didn't sleep nearly as much as I had wanted, but at least it was something. I woke up feeling slightly better. I called Alice and we agreed to meet in the lobby so that we could grab some lunch and then head back over to Renee's.

I hoped I hadn't offended Edward when I told him I didn't want him to come with us, but if I did, there wasn't too much I could do about it. This was something that I had to do on my own. In the few short days that Edward had been with me in the city, he had become a kind of security blanket. I felt a confidence around him that I didn't normally have and as wonderful as it was, I needed to see if I could hold that confidence on my own.

After a change of clothes and a quick freshening up in the bathroom, I gave Edward a quick kiss good-bye and met Alice in the lobby. We hopped in a cab and went to the best place for lunch – Grey's Papaya. I hadn't had one of their hot dogs since I moved to L.A. and I had been craving something greasy and bad for me. It was the quintessential comfort food. The grease that was soaking into the bun was exactly what I needed to help raise my spirits and my cholesterol. Everywhere I went in California seemed to specialize in healthy and organic food; it was rare to find a place that didn't advertise its health aspects.

Sitting on a park bench near the Grey's stand, we got a few curious looks, but no outright staring. It was nice to be somewhat anonymous again. I realized that the only time I seemed to be photographed and bothered was when Edward and I were together. When we were apart, nobody seemed to care. I was never one for public attention.

"So, I was thinking," Alice said with a mouthful of bun, "that maybe Jake should meet us at Renee's."

"Okay," I shrugged and took another bite.

Alice took a sip of her drink and stared at me. "Really? You don't mind?"

"Why would I? He'd be there for support right?"

Alice nodded and grimaced. "Please don't take this the wrong way, but you know nothing about men's clothing and I'm better with women's fashion…" her voice trailed off.

"You don't trust me to pick out a suit for Charlie?" I slammed my drink on the bench. "You're just as bad as she is, you know that? Do you really think I'm incapable of doing something as simple as making sure my father's favorite suit is clean? I don't need people doing shit for me, Alice. I'm a big girl and I can do it." I stood up and threw the rest of my food away, having suddenly lost my appetite. Alice sighed and followed suit as I flagged down a cab.

We got in the cab and gave the driver the address.

Alice said, "Look, I wasn't trying to offend you. We just thought it might be easier on you for you not to be surrounded by all things Charlie right now, especially with Renee around. That's all. I swear it has nothing to do with you not being able to do anything on your own." Her eyes were pleading with me to understand.

"Fine," I relented. "So he's meeting us there then?"

"Mmhmm,"she mumbled as she typed away on her PDA, not even paying attention to her surroundings. We had been together long enough that I knew she was in assistant mode and not acting as my best friend. I pulled out my phone and saw it had been turned off. I cringed at the thought of how many missed calls and voicemails I would have to respond to. Alice looked up from her Blackberry to see me scrolling through calls.

"I've already taken care of your emails. They were mostly condolences and a few people rescheduled their meetings until late next week. There were a couple of e-mails I left for you that I think you should read when you're alone."

I quirked an eyebrow and waited to see if would say anything else. "I didn't read them, if that's what you're wondering. I just saw who they were from and flagged them, that's all."

"Okay. I'll look at them later."

We pulled up to Renee's building. I took a look around and saw there were still dozens of people standing outside, most of them with cameras. I glanced behind us and saw a large black Escalade pull up behind us. I was relieved to see it was the Black's family car. Jake got out, heading towards the building when he did a double take towards our cab. He wore a sad smile and helped us out. The moment I stepped out of the car the camera flashes went off. Jake wrapped a protective arm around me and pulled me close, leading Alice and me into the lobby.

"Where's the man candy?" Jake asked as we got on the elevator. I felt relieved he didn't ask how I was doing. I was sick of hearing that question, especially because I wasn't sure anymorehow I was feeling. I wasn't used to not having answers to questions and I didn't like it.

"Back at the hotel."

"He flew out all this way and he's staying at the hotel? You left the luscious sex on legs also known as Edward Masen alone in a hotel room?" He was practically drooling. "If you're going to be here, do you mind if I go ahead and keep him company? I could really use some comforting too." All thoughts of the reasons we were at my parents' place were quickly forgotten in the short ride to the top. It was nice.

"Jake, I never knew you had such strong feelings for actors, or maybe it's just a thing for a particular actor?" Alice chimed in.

"Alice, my darling, don't pretend that you don't know the reason why I'm the last one to leave the locker room." Jake's tone was jovial, but firm enough to let her know the topic was closed for discussion.

We reached the penthouse level and I froze. It was just a few hours ago that I had my fight with Renee and I wasn't sure of what I would find. I was suddenly grateful to have Alice and Jake with me. Edward had seen enough of my weakness for a while; I didn't want him to see me like this anymore.

The front part of the house was silent. The sounds we made walking down the hall echoed off the walls. I had never heard the house this quiet before. There were always members of the staff doing something, but not today.

"Renee," I called out.

No answer.

We walked further down and entered the family room. I called out her name again but received no answer. I shot a nervous look to Jake and Alice who seemed to be concerned too.

"Let's get this over-with." I turned on my heel and headed towards the master bedroom with Jake and Alice close behind.

It felt odd to be in Charlie and Renee's bedroom. It had been years since I'd been in there. I was hit with flashback memories of being four or five years old: Renee leaving for Saturday shopping or brunches and my sneaking into their bed to snuggle with Charlie. We'd eat cereal in bed and watch The Smurfs and Thundercats until she came home. On Sundays when I would sneak in, we would watch the analysis of the football games and he would teach me about offensive versus defensive players. I hadn't "snuck" into their bedroom in almost two decades, but it was now that I was realizing I would never get to do it again.

I would never again get to tell my dad that I loved him. We'd never again get to share bowls of Trix with our cartoons or plates of nachos again on Sundays.

"Can we just pick out his suit and get out of here, please?" I begged. They both nodded and moved towards the closet.

It only took twenty minutes for us to make sure we had everything. I grabbed a couple of his flannel shirts from the dresser to take with me back to the hotel. We packed it all up and headed to the front door. I asked Alice and Jake to give me a minute and I would meet up with them downstairs.

After they left I stood in the entry hall and said good-bye to the place where I grew up. I would be returning with Renee after the funeral, but without Charlie's presence, this place was cold and no longer felt like home.

I was moving on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there, it's me again.
> 
> Some amazing fic's have come out recently and I feel the need to share them with you all:
> 
> Hints of Me by 22Blue
> 
> Renfield and Chiclets by Katinki-Her Edward is dark, horny and absolutely hilarious.


	15. It's Just Moving On

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my birthday today! (9/13) It's a rainy day here in South Florida, so hopefully I can get more uploaded before football starts in a few hours!
> 
> Mad props to IAmToWait who pre-read and showed the importance of the hyphen and Irritable_Grizzzly who always points out my errors in plot as well as gives me sound advice.
> 
> See you at the bottom!
> 
> As usual…I don't own anything but my own plot.

Chapter 15

Jasper Whitlock

The changes in Edward in the past few months had been remarkable. He'd always been a cocky and arrogant person, but ever since he met Bella it seemed that he'd changed. Deep down, I knew he was a good person and when we first met as kids in Chicago, he was the only one who befriended me despite my accent.

Five years ago when we moved out to L.A., his metamorphosis was slow and subtle. He was still a nice guy, but people were making demands on him left and right.

It all started to go to his head. Before we moved out west I knew for a fact he had only slept with two girls. He started getting small roles in various sitcoms and commercials. The more recognizable he became, the larger his ego became. Gone was the nice guy, andin his place an asshole persona emerged. He loved the attention and was thrilled to no longer be the guy who took his half-sister to prom.

When he became successful with those lame vampire movies, he became unrecognizable to me. It was my job as his manager and best friend to keep him grounded and I had failed. Tanya had tried several times to give him reality checks. He would just keep saying that he was "Edward-fucking-Masen" and he "owned this town." Unfortunately, he was right. If someone asked him how many women he'd slept with now, he'd just say that it was in the double digits - and I don't mean the 'teens'.

Before meeting Bella, he would never have thought about flying across the country for a woman when he wasn't completely sure he'd get laid.

Since Bella Swan had entered our lives, we were happier. I now had Alice, and I could see the signs that my best friend was back. I could only hope the hold Bella had on Edward would keep him in his rejuvenated state, however I wasn't entirely optimistic. I knew how much Edward loved the parties, the women throwing themselves at him and having his picture everywhere.

I knew that one of three things would happen with Bella:

The first option was that he would realize what an amazing woman she was (if he hadn't already) and hang on to her.

The second would be that despite his obvious feelings for Bella, he would go back to L.A. and slip into his old habits and try to bring her along for the ride.

The third and final option was that he'd feel smothered and would turn tail and run.

At the age of twenty-seven, the man had yet to allow himself to connect with anyone in such a way that would lead to a real relationship with a real future. My fear was that he would miss the lifestyle and revert to his asshole tendencies, leaving an already emotionally-scarred Bella in his wake of selfishness.

Although I was his best friend and I would like to trust him, the third scenario seemed the most likely.

Edward Masen

I wasn't offended in the slightest when Bella said she didn't want me to go with her. If anything, it was for slightly selfish reasons. I really didn't feel like dealing with her egg donor of a mother and I wasn't too sure how much more crying I could take. I had no problem being there for Bella; I liked being her shoulder to cry on, but it was starting toweigh on me. Emotional stress wasn't something I wasused to dealing with unless I was on-set.

After Bella left the hotel with Alice, Jasper and I decided to grab a bite at the hotel restaurant. In the past few days, we hadn't had a chance to talk about work and future projects.

We were able to get through to Carlisle at his office and have a conference call about my future. After an hour of tasteless farmer jokes and Jasper promising to fuck Esme better than Carlisle could, we somehow managed to discuss my career and my schedule for the rest of this year and into the next.

I decided to take advantage of the six weeks of free time and take a vacation. I was hoping I would be able to persuade Bella to come with me for at least part of it. I figured she would need a break.

The only way I was able to get away with keeping my schedule clear was by promising Carlisle that I would read a few scripts and take a few meetings. I wasn't entirely sure why he was getting so sketchy and fucking persistentthat I be working all the time. There wasn't any sign of my career slowing down, so I wasn't sure what he was concerned about. I mentioned my thoughts to Jasper and he agreed.

After we finished lunch, we still hadn't heard from the girls. Since I had left my phone back in the room, Jasper was the one to make the call. Alice informed him that Jake had met them atRenee's and it had taken longer than expected. They had already left the funeral home and would be back at the hotel shortly.

"So I was thinking of doing something for the girls, ya know, to help them relax and everything." I closed my eyes and leaned forward. I could feel the start of a headache coming.

"That's a good idea. Do you have anything in mind?" Jasper asked with a mouthful of food.

"Nah, just throwing the idea out there. Everything the past few days with Renee and Charlie has been tiring. Man, Bella had said Renee was a piece of work, but I had no clue she was that fucking bad. She had the nerve to tell Bella that I was a 'gold digger'." I shook my head and chuckled, which only made my head hurt more.

"Wow, that's pretty bad," he laughed. I gave a slight nod in acknowledgment

"So how much longer do you think we'll be here?" I asked as I leaned back in the chair and relaxed a little.

"What do you mean?" His tone was cautious.

"I mean how much longer did you think we were going to stay here? You heard Carlisle. He's freaking out and getting pissy. How long do you think we have to hang around here after the funeral?" I pinched the bridge of my nose, silently willing away the surrounding noise of the hotel.

"Don't do this, Ed." His voice was low.

"Do what?"

"You know what I'm talking about. Don't go back to the way you were."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I looked over to glare at him, only to find he was already staring at me with narrowed eyes.

"I'm talking about the fact that since you've met Bella you've changed. I feel like I've had my friend back and not the douchebag you turned into when we moved to L.A..

You got Carlisle to charter a fucking jet to get us here, you went bat-shit crazy when you couldn't find her a couple of weeks ago and now that you're involved you're going to run. You want to take off now that you've realized you've signed on for something you aren't ready for." His accent was getting thicker, which only happened when he was incredibly angry or drunk.

"I didn't sign on for anything I wasn't ready for. I just didn't think things between us would get so serious so quickly. It's freaking me out. It's like I have to be on all the damn time and it's wearing me down. I wasn't expecting that part."

Jasper's little rant gave me pause. Was I fully ready for something like this? I thought I was, but maybe I was too wrapped up in getting what I wanted to see what I needed, or better yet, what Bella needed.

"You know how we went in blind to Iraq and now we don't know how to leave? I just...I don't know, maybe I just need an exit strategy-" I stopped myself when I saw Jasper's eyes widen..

"Oh, don't stop now. By all means, please continue to compare your relationship to Iraq. This was just getting interesting," I heard Jacob Black's voice come from behind me. I could feel my shoulders tense and the lingering pain in my head turned into a full-blown migraine. I turned to see Jacob and Alice giving me glares that could only be compared to a death wish and Bella heading toward the elevators.

"Fuck me," I muttered.

"Oh, I think fucking should be the least of your concerns right now." Jacob plopped down in the chair in front of me while Alice took perch on the arm of Jasper's chair.

"I'm gonna go talk to her." I stood up to leave, but felt a small firm hand grab my arm.

"Don't you dare talk to her," Alice hissed.

"So what do I do now? Let her sit up there alone?" I snapped back.

"You didn't let me finish, asshole. What you're going to do is sit here while I go up there and gather your shit, and then you're going to get on a plane back to L.A.. Bella went through a lot of shit today and it doesn't seem like you really care. So you are going to get your stuff, leave, and don't bother contacting her. When she is ready, she will contact you." The look on Alice's face scared the hell out of me. It was like watching a mother bear defend her baby cub.

"I don't fucking think so Alice."

"So what are you going to say to her, huh? Tell me, Edward. What are you going to tell the emotionally distraught person up there? She just had a huge fight with her mother defending you, her father just died andshe's burying said father tomorrow. She was expecting to have the comfort and support from someone she thought cared about her, when in reality you're just looking for a way out." Alice shook her head in disappointment and pushed herself off Jasper's chair.

"You've got it wrong."

"Tell me, what part of it am I wrong about?" She put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot, waiting for an answer.

She was right. I had no idea what I was doing. I had come out to support her but suddenly I was starting to feel smothered. It wasn't even her fault; it was of my own doing. The truth of the matter was that I wasn't ready for someone like her. I was being a selfish asshole and taking what I wanted and giving her almost nothing in return.

In the past few weeks as we had started to get to know each other, everything I had done had been entirely motivated by my own needs and wants. Only once did I ever give Bella a thought as to what she might be thinking, wanting or needing. Which is how I ended up in New York. Somehow, after all that had happened the past few days, I was still finding a way to make it about me.

"You're right," I half-whispered. "She's better off without me here. Just please let her know I want to talk to her when she gets back." Alice closed her eyes and nodded. She turned and left and I slumped back down in my chair.

My migraine was now the least of my problems.

Bella Swan

"That was eventful," Renee said as she shut the door after the last guest had left.

"Really, Renee? Eventful?" I took off my heels and rubbed my feet.

"What would you call it?" She sat in the chair next to me, eyeing me carefully.

"I would call it pathetic, depressing, and revolting; those are a few words that come to mind. All those people at the funeral, the graveside service and the reception claimed they were friends with, and respected Charlie. Yet the second they arrive they're nothing but gossip-mongers pretending to mourn the loss of someone they hardly knew." I could feel the bile starting rising in my stomach at the mockery they had made of Charlie's memory.

People who would shake Charlie's hand at the company Christmas party were the same liars who would talk about the good times they had on the golf course. If they had actually known Charlie, they would have known my father detested golf. Given the opportunity, he wouldn't even stand around talking about golf with these people, let alone play it with them.

"I wouldn't go that far, baby girl. The people who were here today only wanted to pay their respects to the memory of your father." She dabbed her eyes. I rolled mine.

We both knew that today was going to be hard on both of us in different ways. Renee had a hard time pretending not loving the attention she got as the grieving widow. I had a hard time coming to the realization that everyone, regardless of how much I cared about them, would leave me. I had already resolved that I would never have the opportunity to see Charlie again, but I did realize that I was lucky I had such a wonderful and caring person as a father.

"Whatever. Do you need any help cleaning up?" I made a motion around the room that was littered with coffee cups and saucers.

It was Renee's turn to roll her eyes. "The staff will take care of it. Are you staying tonight or are you going back to the hotel?" She looked almost hopeful.

Throughout the entire day, she had constantly taken me by surprise. She acted like the mother I had always wanted her to be. She acted as if she actuallycared about how I was doing, how I was feeling, and she shocked the hell out of me by not asking about Edward's sudden disappearance. Unfortunately, I knew not toget my hopes up because I knew her well enough to know she was just acting.

. This was a woman who was happy when she tried on her funeral dress that she had lost weight due to her grieving. Just one of the many reasons I couldn't trust her to be honest with her emotions.

"I'm going back to the hotel. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon at Jenks' office?" She nodded in response. I put my shoes back on and moved toward the door.

"Good night, mom," I whispered and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

I made my way back to the hotel with relatively little fanfare. The press had been relentless at the start of the day. My guess was they were hoping to get a shot of Edward and me together. Once word had spread that he'd been spotted back in L.A., they backed off.

They were still around though, because of Jacob and Emmett, who were seen coming and going from the hotel. I could have changed hotels, but I didn't have it in me. I didn't really care. I would be back in California in a few days and I could hole myself up in my own home.

When I got back to the room, I saw that Alice was waiting for me. It had only been an hour since she'd left, but it felt like I hadn't seen her in ages. I threw my purse on the dresser and lied on the bed, putting my head in her lap.

The stress of the day finally hit me. I had cried many times in the last three days, but hearing Edward's remarks was the culmination of all my stress and sorrow, and I finally allowed myself the release I I sobbed into Alice's black skirt while she stroked my hair, I started to feel the weight being lifted off my shoulders and a sense of closure surrounded me.

The next morning was spent alone to gather my thoughts for the rest of the day. I didn't know what was going to happen, but I knew it would be taxing.

I had asked Jake to be there with me for support. If it were three days ago, I would have preferred Edward, but knowing what I did now, I was glad he'd left. I had dealt with enough of Renee's crap this week; I didn't need his insincere presence too.

When we arrived at the lawyer's office I was surprised and confused to see Tyler and Billy there, as well as Renee and her lawyer. I gave Tyler and Billy quick hugs and moved to take a chair between Renee and Jake. Tyler and Billy sat off to the side.

We all remained quiet as Jenks went over the basic disclosure statements, letting us know that if there were any parts of the will anyone wanted to challenge, they would be discussed at another time. This was just for the reading and he wanted everyone to remain silent until he was done. Questions could be asked when he was finished.

First on the agenda was 'personal effects'.

There were only a few things I had wanted from Charlie and none of them were monetary. Charlie knew me better than I thought he did. He not only left me his grandfather's pocket watch, but also a pair of antique earrings and a quilt that had been his baby blanket. I was happy. I gave Jake a small smile and leaned my head on his shoulder.

Renee cleared her throat. Jenks stammered for amoment and continued. He said that I had my choice to go through any of Charlie's personal items that weren't passed on to Renee and requested that anything I did not wish to keep should be sold and the money donated to charity.

There was so much legal jargon that I started to zone out. I figured that everything else would be left to Renee. I was snapped out of my daze when Renee jumped from her chair, yelling that there had been a mistake.

"In all due respect Mrs. Swan, I was present when Mr. Swan amended the will. I can assure you that he was of sound mind and I do not make mistakes. Now please sit down so I may finish," Jenks said.

Renee sat back down and openly glared at me while her lawyer whispered in her ear.

"What the hell is going on," I whispered to Jake.

"You weren't paying attention?" he whispered back. I shook my head.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Jenks, would you please repeat what you just read?" he asked with a small smirk.

"You don't have to reread it, Jenks. Just paraphrase for me, please.

"Of course, dear." He gave a faint smile but large enough to make crinkles around his eyes. "Bella, Char - excuse me - Mr. Swan, left you the penthouse, as well as the property in the Hamptons and the Swan family cabin inAspen. If you choose to keep the properties, you will be responsible for all the expenses, such as property taxes and insurance. The homes were bought outright so there aren't any outstanding debts."

"Wow." I couldn't think properly. I had completely forgotten that we had a place in Colorado. "So what do I do if I want to sell the properties? I live in California, so I don't need them." I looked at Jake who was staring at me with a shocked expression. Behind him I could see Billy and Tyler looking equally surprised.

"What?" I asked.

"Don't you think I need a place to live, Isabella?" Renee screeched.

Oh fuck. I had completely forgotten that Renee lived in the penthouse. "Of course you do. I don't care if you stay there. You can have it," I shrugged.

"Thank you for your generosity, Isabella," she sneered.

I ignored her and turned to Jenks. "Could we please move on? I take it that there's a lot more to read."

Jenks nodded and continued. Along with the properties, Charlie bequeathed almost all of his financial assets, including his shares in SMG, bank accounts that I had no idea existed, (and judging by Renee's reaction, neither did she) and his life insurance policy which would pay out forty-five million dollars. Forty percent would go to me, and sixty percent was for Renee with the stipulation that she donate at least fifteen percent to charity.

Apparently Charlie had taken notice that Renee was a money-grubbing pain in the ass and this was her karma.

When Jenks moved on to the company, I tensed. I didn't want to own the company; Charlie knew this, but the day had been full of surprises so I had no idea what was coming. According to the will, Charlie had asked that I step into his role as CEO until a replacement could be found and Tyler would take my position, despite the fact that we had both been recently promoted.

He asked that Billy look over the financials and for him to take on the position of CFO until they could find someone competent for the job. Until Charlie's heart attack, he had been doing both jobs. I had no idea that he had been working that hard.

"I'm sorry, Jenks, but is there much more?" I sighed and slouched in my chair. I was mentally and physically exhausted. I looked at my watch and realized that we had been there for almost four and a half hours.

"We're almost done, Bella. There are just two more things we need to take care of. Mr. Swan left you and Mrs. Swan a letter." He reached into his desk and pulled out envelopes. Mine was a large manila packet, while Renee's was a small business letter. "I also need each of you to sign these papers to show that you understand the terms of the will." I nodded and leaned forward and signed. I just wanted to get the hell out of there.

Finally granted my freedom, I gave Jenks a quick good-bye handshake, ignoring Renee, and left with Jake in tow.

"So...that was interesting," he said.

I held up my hand for him to stop. "Please, just not now."

"Okay, but is it okay if I just say one thing?"

I looked up at him and saw he was pressing his lips together trying to suppress a smile. "You have until we reach the bottom floor," I said as we stepped onto the elevator.

He waited for the doors to close and shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Bella, holy fuck! Seriously, what the hell was all that? Charlie leaves you a shit-ton of money and houses, and you're now Renee's fucking landlord!" he hollered.

"I don't want any of it."

"I know you don't."

"I don't want any of it; I don't need any of it."

"I know." He pulled me into his side. I could feel a familiar burning sensation behind my eyes, but I didn't have any tears left. I didn't want to cry anymore.

We left the building and climbed into the waiting town car. We met Alice and Jasper in the lobby and headed to the hotel restaurant for dinner. After we had been seated and ordered our drinks, Alice broke the silence.

"Okay, so what happened today?" Her eyes were wide with curiosity.

"You tell them," I told Jake.

"Well...besides the fact that Bella's a fucking tycoon and Renee's landlady, not too much." I suddenly felt sick. I excused myself and went to the room.

I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the carpet. I felt my blackberry vibrate beside me. I glanced down to see Billy had sent me a message. We briefly exchanged some texts and agreed that we would meet up in a couple weeks to go over everything regarding SMG.

I lied down on the bed and fell asleep, still fully dressed.

I woke up the next morning feeling better than I had since I had flown to New York. I had done everything I needed to do for now, and anything else that needed to be done could be accomplished with faxes, emails and phone calls. I wanted to get back to California and start living again.

I texted Alice to let her know I was awake and asked her to book me a flight back to L.A. that left in the late afternoon or evening.

I jumped in the shower and for the first time in a couple of days, I let my thoughts wander. As much as I didn't want to, I couldn't help but think about what and how Edward was doing. Sine the incident, I hadn't allowed myself any time to think about Edward and what I overheard.

I knew that Alice had told him not to contact me until I was ready, but since I had shut down that part of my brain, I still hadn't fully processed his words. At the time I had more important things to think about, and while Charlie's passing is something that was always on my mind, it was slowly becoming a backdrop.

I was hoping that I wouldn't have to see him anytime soon, but the fact that Alice was seeing his best friend and manager, it would be inevitable. We also lived ten minutes away from each other and went to some of the same places.

I let my mind go back to a place it rarely went anymore; the place of insecurity. Was it something I had done? He had said that he wanted whatever he could get, but what if he got tired of waiting? Was I not worth it? No. I damn well knew I was.

The more I thought about it, the more questions I had and the angrier I became. By the time I was done with my shower, I was furious. I heard muffled voices gradually getting louder and coming closer to my door. I decided to ignore the yelling match going on in the hall and get dressed, until I noticed the voices belonged to Alice and Jasper.

I poked my head out, trying not to show my almost nakedness to the entire floor.

"What the hell is going on you guys?"

"May we come in for a minute?" Alice asked.

"Yeah, give me a second." They both nodded. I quickly threw on some clothes, opened the door and ushered them in. They walked in quietly, both looking anywhere but at me.

"Okay, so what's going on? Why are you fighting in the middle of the hallway?"

I began packing up some things from around the room while I waited for one of them to answer. I heard them whispering to each other. I was already in a bad enough mood and they were only making it worse.

"Alice, are you going to tell me what's going on? There's something you're not telling me. I'm in such a bad mood right now that I highly doubt there's anything you can say that will make it worse." I crossed my arms and leaned back against the dresser.

"Fine, I'll tell her," Jasper sighed and ran a hand through his hair. I narrowed my eyes at him, silently willing him to continue. "Since Edward left three days ago, he's been asking how you are." I felt my stomach tighten at the mention of Edward's name. "I swear, Bella, I haven't told him anything." Despite the fact he was Edward's best friend, I believed him.

"Okay, I don't understand why this is an argument?"

"Jasper might be a little pissed that I answered his phone and told Edward to fuck off and if he was concerned about you, he should have thought about that before he realized he wasn't ready to wear his big-boy boxers and be a grown up." Alice looked a little sheepish but I could see the grin she was trying to suppress.

"I still don't get why this is an argument."

"I was trying to get it through Jasper's thick head that Edward decided he wasn't ready to deliver on promises he made and he left. Because he chose to leave, he forfeits any information regarding you and how you are." She sat back on the bed and folded her arms, looking smug.

"Okay, I get that, but you were the one who told him to leave and not talk to me.".

"Bella, he was going to leave anyway," Jasper's voice was low. "It was only a matter of time before he bailed; he was planning to leave after the funeral. I just didn't realize he would come to his decision so quickly."

The conversation I heard a few days ago came crashing back.

"It's freaking me out; it's like I have to be 'on' all the damn time and it's wearing me down."

"So he was planning on leaving regardless and there wasn't anything I could do to stop him?"

Jasper nodded.

I could feel my emotions warring between anger and relief. I was angry because of the empty promises. He had never outright promised anything to me, but his actions spoke for themselves, or at least I had thought so. I was partially relieved because I knew that his bailing had nothing to do with me, but because of his own issues..

"Well good for him for doing what he felt was best for him," I said. I finished packing up all my clothes and moved to the bathroom to gather my toiletries.

"Wait a second," Alice called out.

"What?" I poked my head out.

"You're not mad about all this?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"Because he left the day before your dad's funeral! He was only thinking of himself and not you like he should have been!" she yelled.

I came out of the bathroom and looked at my tiny friend. Her face was flush with anger and I could see that she was starting to vibrate.

"Alice, you need to calm down. I'm not mad because it's his problem, not mine. Does it hurt like hell because I was starting to trust him? Yeah it does, but I know it's not my fault and I sure as hell know it wasn't because I wasn't good enough." I sat down next to her and wrapped my arms around her.

"Look, Ali, I've got so much on my plate right now. Charlie's estate, my job, my current interim job, and I know your phone has been going off like mad with calls for interviews and whatnot. If Edward," I took a deep breath to compose myself, "… feels that he's not ready to wear his 'big-boy boxers' as you say, then I'm better off right now. The less stress the better. I don't have the time for his bullshit."

"What would you like me to do the next time he asks about you?" Jasper spoke up. I had almost forgotten he was in the room.

"Tell him whatever you want." I shrugged. "I will request that if he asks to pass on a message to me, or wants you to be his courier pigeon, that you tell him to ask me himself. Otherwise what Edward Masen's concerns are toward me are his problem and not mine."

"That settles that, I guess," Jasper chuckled.

The three of us fell into a light conversation about my plans in L.A. Alice and Jasper were planning to stay behind for a few more days.

As they left, Alice let me know that she had taken care of most of my emails but left the personal ones behind, and that my flight from JFK would be leaving in three hours.

I scrolled through the emails and saw a couple from Billy, one from Renee's lawyer and one from Emmett. I was automatically intrigued. The entire week we'd spent in the same city, I had only seen Emmett a handful of times. I was curious as to why he kept his distance, but with so many other things happening, I never took the time to ask.

His email was a short note asking how I was doing and when I thought I might be back. I thought that it was somewhat odd, especially since he hadn't been living at my house.

Instead of writing him back, I decided to call. The phone rang twice before he picked up.

"Bella?"

"Hey, Em. I just got your email."

"Yeah? So how ya holdin up?"

"I'm okay..."I let my voice trail off.

"You sure? Maria told me about the will...it sounded like things were, uh ... intense." I could tell he was being cautious. He knew how our mothers operated. It was one of the first things we had bonded over.

"It was interesting. At least I had Jake with me for support."

I inwardly cringed at his next question.

"I know I'm an asshole for asking and I'm sure you'll tell me if I am, but why wasn't Edward with you at the funeral?"

"He left," I said softly

"He left?" Emmett asked with confusion. "Where did he go?"

"I'm assuming he's back in California."

"You don't know?"

"I'm not his keeper. He said that he was going and he left," I explained. I had just opened myself to thinking about Edward and his leaving, the last thing I wanted to do was discuss this with my ex-fiance.

"What the hell, Bella? What was his reason for leaving?" he yelled.

"Emmett, calm the fuck down!" I yelled in the phone. I waited a moment for him to calm down and continued. "I really don't want to get into it, okay? What happened is between Edward and me. I'm fine with it, really," I lied.

"Listen, I'm back in L.A. and I was hoping that when you got back we could grab some dinner. There are some things I think we need to talk about." I raised my eyebrows.

I looked at the clock and saw I only had a short amount of time before I needed to head to the airport. I wanted to eat something and take an Ambien so I would sleep on the plane. I agreed to meet for dinner and he promised to call with the details.

Emmett McCarty

I heard Maria gasp from the other room and start asking questions, her voice getting louder and louder. No doubt whatever gossip she was hearing or spreading was interesting.

I ignored her ranting and finished packing my bag so that I could catch my flight back to California. I had taken off at a moment's notice after signing a contract with the Raiders. Luckily, Al Davis was senile enough and didn't pay too much attention to the comings and goings of the front office to notice my sudden disappearance.

The entire week dealing with Charlie's passing had hit me hard. I had my own father, but he had never been around. When Bella and I were together, Charlie had taken me under his wing. For the most part, he was the father I never had and I couldn't help but feel awful onvarious levels for the way I had treated Bella.

Charlie Swan had been nothing but generous and kind and in turn, I had treated his daughter like shit. I took advantage of the kindness and generosity Charlie had worked hard to instill in her despite Renee's presence in her life. I used her weakness and insecurities to do whatever and whomever I wished.

Seeing Bella alone at the wake and funeral made me wonder where the hell Masen had gone. Rosalie had told me the night of the premiere that he had a reputation with women, so I wasn't entirely surprised. However, since he arrived in New York he had been glued to her side, so his absence confused me. I had tried to approach her a few times after the funeral, but all my attempts had been halted by Alice or Jake.

The day of the funeral I booked my flight to leave the next day. My mother didn't need me around, and Bella had her support group and had enough to deal with without me trying to get in her way.

When I got back, I emailed her, figuring she would contact me when she was ready. After she confirmed my suspicions about Masen, I asked her to dinner. I had never really apologized for all the hell I put her through. I wanted to at least establish a friendship with her, and be the kind of man that would make Charlie Swan proud.

Edward Masen

I had fucked up.

I was fucked up. I never anticipated how quickly things escalated with Bella until the pressure of her needing support scared the hell out of me. I wasn't ready like I thought I was, but that didn't mean I should have bailed.

Granted, Alice had practically kicked me out of the hotel but I knew I should've put up more of a fight to at least talk to her. To tell her what was going through my mind. However doing that would have been selfish on my part and I had already been so self-absorbed that I thought my issues were more important than what she was going through. As much as I wanted to fight harder, doing so would have made this more about me and not her.

Which is why for the third day in a row since I flew back from New York, I was drunk. I had been calling Jasper to get information about Bella, but all I received were one-word answers. She was always "okay" or "fine." He would never tell me anything more. When Alice answered my call, she laid into me like I deserved..

Jasper called me back some time later. He told me that Bella was flying back home, but he and Alice were staying behind for a few days. He did warn me not to call her or drop by her house. He reminded me of the promises I had made to Carlisle to read some scripts and said it might not be a bad idea to take that vacation I had talked about.

After I hung up with Jasper, I listened to my emails and Irina, my very irate publicist, had left me profanity-laden voicemails about how bad it looked that I had been by Bella's side and then was suddenly gone right before the funeral, especially since my leaving wasn't due to work commitments.

Word had spread about how the film was being placed on hold so I couldn't have used that excuse if I wanted to. I called Irina and in not so many words she told me to "fucking fix this PR mess I've created" because she could only keep my image so clean without having to start hiding bodies.

I didn't want to run anymore; what I wanted wastobe near Bella. It was as if I was addicted her. The second I had stepped off the plane at LAX I was hounded by photographers wanting to know if I came back for someone else and why I left Bella. I ignored them as best as I could.

Two days later Jasper called to let me know he and Alice were coming back and asked if I would join them for dinner on Saturday. He quickly added that Bella wouldn't be joining us. On the one hand, I figured she was trying to avoid me, but on the other, I wondered if she had plans. It was childish and immature, but I couldn't resist being jealous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fic Rec's:
> 
> The Gentleman from Washington State by Betty Smith
> 
> Don't You Wanna Take a Ride With Me? By StephK0525
> 
> Hints of Me by 22blue


	16. It's Just Emmett

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 16
> 
> Irritable_Grizzzly beta's, you guys read, SM owns.

Bella Swan

By the time Saturday rolled around, I was exhausted. With unpacking, slowly catching up on some work, and setting meetings, I had done fairly well in keeping my mind busy and off of Charlie. Instead I focused on my plans with Emmett. He had said he wanted to talk, which for most girls would send them to the hills screaming, but because we had already broken up, I was merely curious.

Alice had come home earlier and let me know she and Jasper were going out with one of Jasper's friends for sushi.. I told her I had plans, but didn't tell her with whom.

Emmett called and asked if we could meet earlier. , He got a call about a problem at work and had to be in earlier than usual.. We agreed to meet at some Italian place in West Hollywood. I thought it was odd that he would choose Italian, since he hated it and I loved it, and rarely did he ever consider what I might want.

Alice came downstairs around seven trying to fasten an earring and look for her shoes at the same time. The girl had always been an amazing multi-tasker which is why she made such a great assistant. She caught sight of me lounging on the couch watching TV.

"Bella, you're still here!" Her expression held a mixture of horror and surprise.

"Yeah, I'm just about to grab a shower and get ready." I took a look a good look at the way she was dressed. "You look nice." I took notice of her skinny jeans and fluffy red peasant top, which on anyone else it would have looked utterly...well...stupid.

"Uhm, thanks. I think I forgot something," she stammered, then ran back upstairs and slammed her bedroom door. I shrugged off her behavior and got off the couch. I looked down and saw that my body had made an actual indent in the leather cushions. I headed upstairs and heard Alice yammering away, obviously on the phone. I didn't pay attention to her conversation until I happened to hear her say my name and that she couldn't lock me in my room.

I was curious as to whom she was speaking to and why she was talking about me, particularly the "locking me in my room" part.

I waited a few moments and when I was sure I didn't hear her speaking anymore, I knocked on her door. She opened it, looking flustered. "Hey, you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, why?" She wiped a piece of hair out of her eyes.

"You sure?" She nodded. Clearly she wasn't going to tell me what was going on.. "I'm gonna jump in the shower. Are you going to be here when I get out?"

"Probably not. I'm leaving in a few to meet Jasper at his place." She paused in thought. "I never asked you where you were going tonight."

"You're right, you didn't." I flashed her my best evil smile. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah." She pulled me into a tight hug. "Have fun tonight with your mystery date, but please keep your phone on in case something happens. I have a bad feeling, okay?"

"Okay..." Alice insisted that she was psychic to a degree, but her premonitions only came true about thirty percent of the time. Alice was much more confident in her abilities and would say never to bet against her. "Right, well I'm gonna go shower, so you go have fun with Jasper and his friends." I gave her another smile and left, still wondering what was going on.

Emmett met me at the entrance of Cravings Restaurant on West Sunset where we were quickly seated in the back. To say things were awkward would be a gross understatement. After I complimented him on his shirt and he told me he liked my shoes, we sat in silence. We may have had a failed long term-relationship under our belts, but if there was anything that Emmett and I were masters at, it was playing the avoidance game. For what seemed like hours I sat across from him doing everything I could not to look at him. I looked around and took in the decor of low candles and mahogany walls. It wasn't a romantic place but it did create a setting of privacy.

After we placed our orders we continued to sit in silence.

I finally cracked. "All right," I sighed and leaned back against the booth, "why am I here?"

"I asked you to dinner and you came. I thought it was a fairly simple concept."

"Cut the crap, Emmett. You said we needed to talk and those are usually words reserved for people still in a relationship. So I'll ask you again, why am I here?" I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at him.

"I asked you here to apologize." He looked down at the table.

"Apologize? For what?" Had he had done something I wasn't aware of?

"For everything," he sighed still looking at the table.

"You need to be more specific, Emmett. A lot has happened in the past five or six years. Everything is a bit vague," I chuckled. I may have been laughing on the outside, but my insides were twisted in knots. I had a feeling about where this conversation was heading and I didn't know if I was ready for it.

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you while we were together, I'm sorry for making you agree with our arrangement, and I'm really sorry for ruining our relationship. We had something really good at the start, but due to my selfishness, I didn't think about what you wanted or needed. I just took from you and you deserved better." He looked up from the table to see my jaw all but sitting on the floor. His eyes were sparkling, but not with excitement like I was used to. He was on the verge of tears. I suddenly knew why he wanted to apologize in public, he knew I wouldn't make scene.

"Uhm, wow. That was unexpected. May I ask what is making you want to apologize after all this time?" I couldn't look at him for very long because I might start tearing up too.

"I've been feeling like an asshole for a while now. There were a couple of things that kind of put it all in perspective for me though," he took a deep breath and exhaled as his fingers drummed on the table. It was a nervous habit he'd had ever since I knew him. "Alice said that you told Edward about our arrangement and that he didn't exactly react well at first, but he quickly got over it and you guys somehow talked things out. It gave me hope that I could tell Rose and she would react the same way."

"I take it that she didn't take it so well?" I leaned forward and put my hand on top of his, trying to stop him from fidgeting.

He shook his head. "Not so much. She told me I was a pig and a sexist asshole and she couldn't understand why you put up with my sorry ass for so long. She told me I was pathetic and selfish. She was right, Bella. Then she asked me how long it took me to pull my head outta my ass and apologize to you. When I told her that I had never actually apologized, she kicked me out of her house. She told me she was disgusted with me and she needed time to think and in the meantime, I should talk to you."

"So you're only apologizing to get in the good graces of Rosalie Hale? Fuck off, Emmett." I stood and reached down to grab my purse.

"No!" His voice was louder than he intended, causing several patrons to turn and stare. He grabbed my hand and begged, "Please sit down. I'm not done." I looked at his posture; his shoulders were slumped and his expression was silently pleading. I nodded and sat back down.

I took a sip of my wine and gave myself a few minutes to calm down. I took a deep breath and waved my hand for him to continue.

"After Rose kicked me out, I was pissed. I realized I was mad at myself and that she was right. If I hadn't been so wrapped up in myself and my career and what I wanted and needed, than I would have noticed how wrong everything was and how miserable you were. Although we had an agreement, when those pictures of you and Masen came out a few months ago, I got scared. I was jealous and it made me furious that you were with someone else and looking at him the way you used to look at me. It hit me that I didn't have the right to feel that way and I was being a damn hypocrite." He stopped speaking when the server came back with our salads.

When the waiter asked if we wanted anything else, we simultaneously replied, "More wine." I was going to need a fuck-ton of alcohol if I was going to make it through the rest of this dinner.

"You know, I think Masen really cares about you. I can't blame him though." He lightly shrugged his shoulders and took a giant gulp of wine.

"You mentioned another reason?" I reminded him wanting to steer the subject away from Edward. I speared a giant piece of lettuce.

"Huh?" He looked a little confused and then his thoughts seemed to clear. "Oh yeah," he murmured. "The second thing was what happened with Charlie." I stopped with my fork in midair.

"What does Charlie have to do with any of this?" I put my fork down and retreated back into my protective posture.

"Losing him made me see how much of a father figure he was to me too. Bella, more than anything I felt ashamed of myself. I kept thinking how he would be mortified by my behavior and that if I had a daughter I would be fucking livid if anyone treated my little girl the way I treated you."

I was shocked by his admissions.. As much as I appreciated that his first wake-up call was Rosalie's reaction, the revelations regarding Charlie touched me far deeper. I didn't give a shit what Rosalie Hale thought but I always care about what Charlie's opinion of me was. Apparently I wasn't the only person he influenced with his warm heart, mild demeanor and random words of wisdom.

It was a combination of the wine and Emmett's heartfelt confession that made me relax. He leaned forward and stretched his palm open towards me. I lightly placed my hand in his and he squeezed it. He asked for my forgiveness, or at the very least to think about it. I couldn't say anymore because I was at a loss for words and that didn't happen very often.

We sat in silence for a few moments, both of us letting the intense conversation sink in..

"I have something for you." I dug through my purse trying to find the small box.

"Oh?" He raised his eyebrows and gave me a small smile.

"Yeah, sorry it's taken me so long to get this back to you." I placed the box on the table and pushed it toward him.

"Bella, no," he sighed and shook his head. "I told you to keep this." He pushed the box back to me.

"Yes and I told you I'm not in the habit of keeping things that aren't mine. You gave it to me as a promise and I broke our promise. You deserve it back." I pushed the box back to him.

"It's not like I can give it to someone else, it was made for you. What would I do with it?" He popped the box open and took out my former engagement ring.

"I dunno. Sell it on E-Bay?" He let out a loud laugh and shook his head.

"It really is beautiful, isn't it?" he asked.

"Yeah, it is." He took the ring and held it close to the candle and we both admired the patterns as the light refracted through it. I was sad to relinquish the Harry Winston. It was the only remnant of our relationship.

"You're sure you don't want it? You could turn it into earrings or something. You girls like to do that kind of stuff right?" He put the ring back in the box and slipped it into his pocket.

"Yeah, we girls like to do stuff like that," I laughed.

The rest of the meal was spent in comfortable conversation. He filled me in on more of his duties with the Raiders and how he was looking forward to the NFL draft. He asked me questions about work now that I was supposed to take over Charlie's responsibilities even though I didn't want them. I figured he heard about the debacle of the reading of Charlie's will from Maria. He carefully danced around the topic of Edward, but he clearly got the message that it was not open for discussion.

After we were done eating and the bill was settled he escorted me out of the restaurant We finished, settled up the bill, and walked into the cool night air. "It's a nice night," I observed.

"It is. Wanna take a walk?" He glanced down at me, looking hopeful.

"Yeah, why not. You can be my protector in case we get attacked in West Hollywood." I elbowed him in the side. He faked hurt and grabbed me around my waist and tickled my hips, causing me to shriek. He laughed and let go.

We walked in comfortable silence for a block when he finally spoke, "I was thinking about something and I'd love to get your opinion."

"Oh yeah?"

"I miss you." I stopped in my tracks. "Let me clarify," he began again when he saw my look of surprise. "When I say that I miss you, I mean us, the friendship. You were one of the few people I could talk to when I just needed someone to listen. Bells, you and I understand each other, ya know? We might not have worked out romantically, but you have to admit that we have good chemistry outside of the bedroom." He waggled his eyebrows at me.

"You're such an ass!" I laughed and slapped his shoulder. "I do miss you too," I said after a moment. "We did have a good friendship, didn't we?"

I had walked a few feet ahead before I saw that Emmett wasn't next to me. I turned to see him on a bended knee. "Emmett," I hissed, "get your ass off the ground right now! I looked around and noticed that a few people were stopping and staring at us while others had their camera phones out. I stood right in front of him and pulled on his hand, tugging on him to stand up, but he wouldn't budge.

"Bella Swan, will you be my friend?" He grinned wide and winked at me.

It was the same thing he had done five years ago to get me to agree to meet for coffee after my numerous rejections. He had waited for me to be in a public place so I wouldn't refuse him. He wanted to start over.

I had flashbacks to all the crazy stunts that got our families all riled up, the things that we thought were hilarious because we were having fun and didn't give a damn what anyone else thought. When had I let myself become so censored? I wasn't living my life for them.

"Yes!" I yelled.

"She said 'yes'!" he cried. He rose to his feet and picked up me in one swift move. He swung me around in a giant circle making me dizzy from laughing and the motion all at once. I also felt a small part of myself feel happy for the first time in weeks.

"We are going to get so much shit for this, you know that right?" I whispered in his ear as he put me down.

"I have no doubt," he laughed. "You should probably call Alice and have her get a statement ready."

"Oh, I'm working on it now." I pulled out my Blackberry and sent her the message 'I'm (not) really sorry' and then turned my phone off knowing she would call in a matter of minutes.

Edward Masen

Dinner had been awkward to say the least. Sitting with Alice and Jasper, who were feeding each other sushi, was churning my stomach. I wasn't sure it if was because of the overabundance of affection I was watching or the fact I was hung over and drying out after being drunk for almost four consecutive days.

When Alice wasn't practically sitting in Jasper's lap she was glaring at me. She barely talked to me throughout the entire dinner.

She still hadn't forgiven me and I didn't blame her. It was a shitty thing to do and I had no idea how to make amends. I knew I made a mistake leaving Bella. I missed her presence and being able to talk to her and wrap my arms around her when we'd go to sleep.

When we left there were a few photographers outside so we quickly piled into Alice's car and headed back to my house. We had just walked through the front door when Alice began typing furiously on her phone.

"What's goin' on'? Jasper slurred.

"It's Bella. She sent me a message and then she turned her phone off! I swear to God I'm going to kill her..." she let her voice trail off.

"Is she okay?" I started to panic, imagining all kinds of horrible scenarios. I decided to go to her and began looking for my keys.. If she was in need, then I could prove I was capable of being there for her.

I remembered that my keys were in my pocket and made my way to the front door but stopped when I heard Alice say, "Where the hell are you going?"

"I'm going to find Bella." I rolled my eyes and moved towards the door.

"Really? How are you going to find her? Plus, you're drunk, you jackass." She stomped over and grabbed my keys out of my hand.

"But she needs me. I'm good in those situations," I slurred.

"Yeah, you're also good at leaving when she needs you the most," she snapped.

"Alice!" Jasper yelled, "He said he was sorry and he's apologized. Stop trying to keep them apart. We need to find ways to get them back together." He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned in for a kiss.

"Jasper, baby, as much as I love you I am not going to help him get my best friend back so that he can break her heart again. He's got to figure out what the hell he wants first." She turned and glared at me.

"Wait, did you say you love me?" Jasper's eyes were wide and slightly glassy. She turned back and smiled at him and nodded. "I love you, too," he said and then they started making out and fell onto the couch.

I rolled my eyes in disgust. I went to leave but remembered that Alice had my keys and Jasper left his car at the restaurant. I could have dug for Alice's keys but she was right. I was in no condition to drive. I sighed and climbed the stairs and went to bed.

I woke up with the light shining right in my face and a lukewarm cup of coffee on my bedside table. As I groaned from my wicked hangover I began my morning bargaining with God that I would not drink any alcohol for the rest of my life if He would just make the pain go away.

I went downstairs in search of Tylenol, food and a bottle of water. I found everything I was looking for with the addition of a very frustrated Alice shouting into her speakerphone.

"What the hell were you thinking? Drinking too much wine isn't a good enough excuse. Is this why you wouldn't tell me where you were going last night? Why didn't you just tell me you were on a date with Emmett?"

She was on a date with Emmett? The bit of conversation that I overheard from Renee and Bella in New York. Were they trying to work things out after all? I suddenly felt sick.

"Oh don't start that shit with me, Alice. Why didn't you tell me you were out with Edward? Did you think I wouldn't find out? What was all that crap you constantly tell me about being in my corner?" Bella's voice came out loud and clear.

Alice cradled her head in her hands and sighed. She looked up and saw me standing there. "Bella, I've gotta go. I'll release the statement that it was a joke and you guys were just goofing around, but how am I supposed to explain if there are any pictures with the ring?"

"How about the truth, if you're capable? I was giving the damn thing back, but maybe now I'll just wear it for shits and giggles," Bella's tone was harsh. "I'm gonna go get ready for brunch." She hung up before Alice could respond.

"What was that all about?" I slid into the chair next to her.

"You really don't want to know," she sighed and closed her eyes, then leaned forward and put her head on the table.

"I told Bella I was going out last night with Jasper and his 'friend.' I never told her it was you. On the other hand, she told me she was going out for dinner but never said that it was with Emmett. Now there are pictures but I don't know what they are and I don't know what the hell she was thinking!" she was practically yelling making my headache worse.

"Easy there Pix-"

"Don't you fucking dare call me a Pixie, asshole." She stared at me. "I don't sound like I've sucked helium, I don't have fucking fairy dust and I sure as shit can kick your ass without a magic wand." She turned on her heel and headed towards Jasper's bedroom.

It was going to be harder than I thought to win Alice back over. When she was completely out of sight I moved as fast as I could to my laptop and turned it on. I typed Bella's and Emmett's names into the search engine but all I could find were the pictures from New York and articles on about Emmett taking a position with the Raiders. I decided to wait a couple of hours and check again. If whatever happened was late last night then chances were that they weren't out yet and Bella was just obviously just giving Alice a head's- up.

I headed back upstairs to shower and change. I passed by Jasper's door and heard moaning and squeaking. I instantly decided to go for a run instead. I quickly changed into my running clothes and headed out.

Running had always been a way for me to relax and sort things out. It gave me a time to think and clear my head. Plus, I could sweat out some of the Saki. It wasn't something I did often because of my busy schedule, but with my six week hiatus I vowed that I would start taking better care of myself. If getting in shape could help me pull my preverbal shit together, then so be it. I wanted to be a better person, not just for Bella, but for myself as well.

When I got home I noticed that Jasper's car was there and Alice's was missing I took a shower and by the time I was done and dressed I saw it had been a couple of hours since I'd checked for the photos. Sure enough, the gossip sites did not disappoint. On the front page of at least two of the sites were pictures of Emmett on one knee with Bella wearing a shocked look on her face and one with Emmett swinging her around in his arms. Then there was another one which showed them holding hands across a table while looking at a ring. The pictures were grainy and their expressions were hidden in shadows.

Even though I heard her say she was giving him back the ring, I felt sick seeing them being so intimate. I recalled Renee's words about Bella trying to work things out with Emmett; maybe there was merit to it after all. The only way to know for sure was to ask, and as of right now Bella wasn't speaking to me and I was sure that Alice wouldn't be very forthcoming either.

I heard movement upstairs from Jasper's room letting me know he was awake and clearly alone because Alice's car was gone. I remembered that Bella had said she was going out for brunch. I knew there was a slim chance that she would be back at the same restaurant where I had seen her with Jake, but it was worth a try.

I climbed the stairs two at a time until I got to his door. "Hey man." I called through the door.

"Yeah," he called back, "give me a minute."

"Wanna go out for some pancakes?"

The door flung open and he met me with a shit-eating grin. "You bet your sweet ass I do. You're driving." He tossed me my keys and jogged down the stairs. I laughed at his predictability and followed him.

During the drive over neither of us spoke much. There wasn't any tension but I wasn't sure what to say. I had pissed him off last night and I made Alice mad this morning, although from the sounds coming out of Jasper's room I figured she was now in a much better mood.

We pulled up and valeted the car. The minute we walked through the door I scanned the room for Bella.

"Dude, what the hell is wrong with you?" Jasper gave me an odd look and made the motion for me to follow the host.

"Nothing." I shook my head in disappointment. We had been seated for a few minutes when I heard a loud feminine squeal and a man's laughter coming from the other side of the restaurant. I immediately knew it was Bella. "I'll be right back." I stood up to go find her, but Jasper stopped me.

"Where are you going?" His eyes narrowed at me.

"To wash my hands," I replied lamely.

"Whatever happens, I'm not holding Alice back from the damage she'll inflict on your ass if you screw this up."

I walked in the direction of the bathrooms hoping to catch a glimpse of Bella. I first saw Emmett's back, then Jacob sitting next to him with a guy who looked vaguely familiar, but I instantly hated. I hated him because he had Bella in his lap and was holding on to her as she attempted to squirm from his grasp. Jacob said something that caused Bella to frown for a second before she leaned into Emmett and whispered in his ear. A second later he nodded and then slugged Jacob in the arm, making everyone at the table laugh. Jake turned and caught sight of me staring. I knew in that moment I was busted and I moved quickly into the men's room.

I came out and ignored Bella's table completely. Because I didn't look in her direction, I was very surprised to see Bella at my table, sitting across from Jasper. They weren't saying anything but it was clear that she was unhappy about our presence.

"Bella?" Up-close I could see that she looked like she'd lost some weight and there were dark circles under her eyes.

"Edward," her tone was curt. Not that I could blame her.

"How are you?"

"Are you following me?" She ignored my question. She crossed her arms over her chest and I caught a glimpse of a diamond ring on her left hand. I could only pray that the ring was for shits and giggles like she had said on the phone.

"You're the one sitting at my table." I pointed out.

"Wrong answer, Ed," Jasper muttered.

I ignored him and continued. "Why would I follow you? The last I heard from your people was that I was to stay away from you and you would come find me if you wanted to talk. So unless you're following me, I am not in the mood to get my ass kicked today." I sat down in the chair next to hers and pointed to a very pissed-off looking Jacob, Emmett, and the vaguely familiar guy.

"This was a bad idea. Jasper, have a great morning and tell Alice I'll help her deal with the pictures later." She stood up and walked back to her table.

"You asshole, go after her." He pointed in Bella's direction.

"She clearly didn't want to talk to me."

"Right, Edward," Jasper scoffed. "She came and sat down and waited for you so that she could just walk away? That makes perfect sense." He reached over the table and slapped the side of my head. "I told you not to screw it up and you did, so go fix it before it's too late."

He was right. Just last night I had wanted to prove to her how much I'd changed, and here I was being an asshole again. I walked as fast as I could toward the entrance without going into a jog and caught Bella's group in the parking lot. She gave Jacob and the other guy a hug and a kiss good-bye and then walked with Emmett towards a yellow Jeep.

"Bella," I called out.

"Edward?" She looked surprised but then quickly her expression changed to a blank slate.

"Bella, may I please have a moment to talk to you?" I glanced around to see if we had an audience. We didn't.

"Bells?" Emmett said quietly.

"I'll be fine, just give me a moment, okay?" He nodded in response and got in the driver's seat of the Jeep. Once he closed the door, she said, "What do you want?"

"I wanted to talk to you. I needed to apologize for my behavior just now,"

"It's fine, I shouldn't have said anything. Have a good day." She patted my shoulder and moved toward the car. My stomach lurched at the thought of her walking away from me. I couldn't let her go.

"Bella, please, I'd like to talk to you. I never got to say anything before..." I couldn't say the words.

She turned around and glared at me, no longer trying to hide her emotions. "Before what? Your leaving the before day of my father's funeral or not having the balls to tell me you couldn't handle our relationship? You need to figure out what you're going to say and make sure you can back it up one hundred percent before you ever speak to me again. Do you understand me?" She was seething, taking deep breaths to calm herself down.

I slowly moved toward her and grabbed her hand. "I understand completely and please believe that I've been thinking a lot this past week and all I want is a chance to tell you everything. I don't care when or where, but please let me know when you're ready. I'll be waiting, okay?" I squeezed her hand and walked back inside. I could feel her watching me walk away and it took all I had not to turn around and beg her to listen to me now.

I sat back down and saw that Jasper had eaten all of his pancakes and almost half of mine. He swallowed his current bite and asked, "You all right?"

"Not really." I shrugged and gave him a brief recap. I looked down at my plate, but realized I really wasn't hungry and Jasper gladly ate the rest of my pancakes.

"You think she'll call?"

"I have no idea, but whenever she does, I'll be ready."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you think of Emmett? Has Eddie wallowed in his misery enough or does he deserve to suffer more? Let me know by clicking that little green box below. Reviewers get teasers...and I've got another juicy one for you.


	17. It's Just Catching Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just Catching Up
> 
> Thank you much to Irritable_Grizzzly who beta'd this chapter from the ground up and after a few revisions I feel like it finally flows properly.
> 
> I have reworked the outline for the rest of the story and the standing total of chapters is at 28. So we have 11 more chapters to go and a lot is going to happen.
> 
> As usual, SM has the Twilight stuff, I have a pissy toddler.
> 
> See you at the bottom.

Bella Swan

After Emmett and I realized the complete shit-storm we'd started, we headed back to my place to let our bodies detox and rest. It had been an emotional evening for both of us. I didn't know how much his apologies would mean until he said them, but I suddenly felt more free than I had in a long time. I no longer had a doubt lingering in the back of my mind that I wasn't good enough and there was something wrong with me. I felt confident again. I felt like me.

Emmett said he felt like he could now look at himself without shame and was eager to see if Rosalie would talk to him, but he was still uneasy, especially when the photos of our little display hit the internet. I told him not to worry. By the time he'd speak to her, everything would be out in the open. .

We both ended up falling asleep at my place and I was hopeful that Alice was spending the night at Jasper's because I wasn't up for explaining why Emmett was curled up on the couch snoring like a logger.

I woke up early and Emmett was still asleep. I stumbled into the kitchen, but soon gave up my attempt to make coffee in the contraption Alice referred to as the "Super-Deluxe-Caffeine-Maker-From-the-Gods" and decided to wake up Emmett.

"What?" he grumbled.

"I'm supposed to meet Jake for breakfast in an hour. Get up and get dressed," I said as I headed up the stairs. I was halfway up when I remembered I had turned off my phone after sending Alice that ominous message.

I went down and retrieved my phone, cringing in anticipation of what would be waiting for me. I turned it on, tossed it on the bed and went in search of something to wear. I was still in my clothes from last night and felt disgusting. I heard my phone beep and decided to ignore it until I heard Alice's song play.

Rather than put off the inevitable conversation, I answered.

"Good morning, Alice," I tried to sound cheerful.

"Mind telling me what your message was about? What the hell is going on?"

"Emmett and I might have been having some fun with the paparazzi last night. Some pictures may surface that could possibly look like…he was proposing to me."

I could hear Alice trying to control herself. "Tell me exactly what happened last night and please don't spare any details." I could imagine that she was sitting there with her head in her hands.

I gave her a detailed replay of the entire evening. I told her about the apology, giving back the ring and our walk after dinner. Needless to say, she freaked out.

"How was Edward last night?" I interrupted her tirade.

I was met with silence and felt a small pain in my chest.

"That's what I thought. Thanks Alice, I appreciate it. Did you really think I was that stupid to believe that going to dinner with 'Jasper's friends' wasn't code for 'Edward'? Give me a little credit."

I felt betrayed even though she didn't technically lie. A better way to describe it was that I felt deceived even though I was being completely hypocritical because I neglected to tell her about Emmett. I knew she wasn't choosing sides, but it sure as hell felt like it, and I couldn't help but feel a little hurt.

We exchanged a few more "pleasantries" and hung up. Obviously this was far from over.

I popped my head downstairs and saw that Emmett was off the couch and moving around. After we quickly showered and dressed, we left to meet up with Jake. We decided to take Emmett's Jeep since I wanted to put my head between my legs to keep myself from feeling queasy.

"How pissed do you think he's going to be when he finds out?"

"Not as mad as Alice was."

The rest of the drive was spent in silence. When I spotted Jake, it didn't escape my notice that he wasn't alone. In fact, he had a very handsome guy sitting next to him. We walked up and raised our eyebrows at each other. He was obviously surprised to see me with Emmett

Jake stood up and gave me a brief hug and whispered, "What's going on?"

"I'll explain in a minute," I whispered back.

"Guys, I'd like to introduce-"

"Sam Uley," Emmett finished. "Huge fan, man."

"Hi, I'm Sam." He reached out and shook my hand and I glanced over at Jake.

"Sam is a catcher," he said and I immediately choked on my water, making it go up my nose, as Emmett reached out and patted my back.

"It's nice to meet you, Sam," I smiled at him.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Sam excused himself to the bathroom. When he came back he leaned over Jake's shoulder. Jake looked back and smiled; it was obvious the two of them were happy and I was happy for them.

Emmett also noticed the little exchange. If he had any doubt before that Jake was gay, they were gone now.

"So what are you ordering, Nessie?" Jake asked.

"Nessie? Who's Nessie?"

Sam flushed bright red and laughed. "It's his nickname for me."

"I can't wait to hear this," Emmett laughed at Sam's expression.

"It's because his…," Jakes eyes motioned towards Sam's lap, "is huge. It's mythological, like-"

"Nessie, as in the 'Loch Ness Monster'?" We were laughing so hard Emmett declared that his sides hurt and I had tears in my eyes. For the first time in what seemed like ages, I was crying happy tears.

After we all calmed down and were informed that Jake's nickname was "Yeti" we placed our orders.

"So," Jake said, "I'm a little surprised to see the two of you together. What's going on?

Emmett explained everything, from his apology to what happened outside the restaurant. I sat in silence the entire time, watching the myriad of thoughts flitter across Jake's face.

"So you guys aren't back together?" Jake asked. We both shook our heads.

"As a matter of fact, I gave him back the ring last night."

"The infamous ring," Sam said. "I remember reading about it last year.."

"I have it with me." Emmett pulled it out of his pocket and tossed it to Sam.

"Why do you have it in your pocket?" Jake asked.

"These are the clothes I wore last night. I crashed at her place." He motioned towards me.

Sam opened the box and whistled. Then he reached for my hand and slipped it onto my finger. "Damn, it looks good."

The weight of the ring felt comfortable, like an old friend. I had worn it for almost two years, but looking at it on my hand now, I no longer felt the sentiments or love I used to associate with it. Looking at the ring on my hand was a reminder that we were so close to making a huge mistake. It was confirmation, not that I needed one, that we had done the right thing by splitting up.

The rest of the morning was spent laughing and joking around. As it turned out, Sam was a huge fan of Emmett's and vice versa. There was an easiness to Jake and Emmett's interactions that I hadn't seen before and I knew I could attribute it to Sam's presence and Jake no longer feeling like he had to be my protector.

By the end of breakfast Jake and I were sharing stories about the crazy things we had done.

"Bella, remember the time we were, what, sixteen or seventeen?" I looked at him questioningly and shrugged my shoulders not knowing where this was going. "Anyway, it was the summer before our senior year in school and we had spent the entire time betting each other to do random stuff." I groaned in sudden realization.

I stood up to punch Jake in the shoulder but Sam grabbed me by the waist and pulled me into his lap. "Oh no, you don't. I wanna hear this," he laughed. I could only squirm.

"Don't you try to steal him, Bella. He may play for my team," Jake laughed, "but I know you're hot enough to turn him." Emmett let out a huge guffaw.

"Hey Yeti, she's small enough that I could just spin her around, it's quite…" he turned to Emmett, "Tell me Em, is she a spinner?"

Emmett's eyes grew wide with surprise. Before he could answer, Jake spoke up, "From what Bella told me, she was more the type to get pinned to the wall." I gasped. Emmett's shoulders shook in silent laughter but he nodded in agreement.

I leaned over to Emmett and asked him to punch Jake for me. Emmett nodded and slugged Jake in the shoulder. At that moment we all lost our composure. I could only imagine the scene we were making. Then Jake suddenly stopped laughing and all traces of his smile were wiped from his face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked.

"We should get out of here." Jake pulled out his wallet and threw several bills down.

"Wait, what's going on?" Emmett and Sam seemed just as confused as I was.

"Bella, unless you'd like to talk to Edward, we should probably go." I slid off Sam's lap and back into my own chair.

"You're sure it's him?" I asked quietly.

"I'm sure. C'mon, let's get out of here."

"I can't keep hiding from him. I'll meet you guys outside, okay?"

"You're a big girl. It's your decision." I chanced a look at Jake's expression and no matter what he said, I could tell he wanted to just throw me over his shoulder and haul me outta there. Still, they walked outside without incident.

I spotted Jasper on the other side of the restaurant and walked over to him. He looked up.

"Jasper, lovely to see you," I plopped down in the chair across from him.

"Bella? Uhm, hi." He looked surprised and then forced a weak smile. "How's it going?"

"I'm good, what are you doing here?" I folded my arms and sat back.

"I thought it was for pancakes but I have a feeling I'm here for another reason. Bella, I'd love to talk to you, but Edward's here and he'll be back shortly."

"I know he's here. If it's okay, I'll wait."

After nearly losing my composure during our confrontation, I left. When Edward caught up with me and tried to explain, I just kept my mouth shut. Despite the many things I wanted to say to him, I bit my tongue, deciding the parking lot was not the best place to hash out our problems. I was relieved when he left the ball in my court and walked away.

I climbed into the Jeep and said nothing. Emmett sighed and pulled out of the parking lot. I looked down and realized I was still wearing my ring. I rolled my eyes, slipped it off and gave it back to him.

"Well, I should let you know that while you were talking to Edward, I had a very brief and interesting conversation with Maria." He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh yeah? What did the shrew want?" I closed my eyes and leaned back in the seat.

"I guess the pictures came out. She wanted to let me know that I would be making a very big mistake if I let you go again," he chuckled.

"What?" I sat up straight. "The woman hates me, Emmett! Please tell me you set her straight!" I begged.

"She does hate you, but she loves your inheritance."

"Oh god," I groaned. "I'm guessing Alice is punishing me by not releasing a statement right away." Not that I thought Alice was vindictive, but it wouldn't be the first timeshe did something like this in the hope that I'd learn my lesson.

I clearly didn't.

"I figure we can deal with this in several ways. The first is that we release our own statement. The second is that you wear my ring and we set another date." My mouth dropped open, but he continued, "Or, we can relax for the rest of the day, ignore all phone calls and wait for Alice to do her job. That last one has my vote."

"Okay, fine. Whatever. You win. I'll relax and enjoy my Sunday. I can't wait for football season."

"Yeah, it'll be great," Em muttered dryly.

"Oh come on now. Maybe this time you'll even win a couple of games in a row." I tried my best not to smile at his soured expression. Emmett knew better than anyone that the Raiders were one of, if not the worst, team in the country.

We pulled into my driveway and I saw Alice's car. "Want me to go in with you?" Emmett offered.

"Nah, I got this. Thanks for everything, Em. I really do appreciate it." I leaned over and give him a hug.

"Thank you. You have no idea how much the past twenty-four hours have meant to me. I haven't had this much fun with you in a long time," he confessed.

"Me too." I gave him a small smile and got out. I walked into the house and prepared myself for the inquisition.

Alice was sitting on the couch staring at a blank TV. I walked past her and into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. I debated waiting for her to bust in and interrogate me, but opted to go and get this conversation over with.

"Hey," I greeted her and sat in the chair next to the couch.

"Hey."

"So did you have a good time last night?"

"Not really," she said softly. She was looking at the floor instead of at me. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I could say the same thing. I would have told you if you'd asked, but you didn't extend the same courtesy and when I brought up who you were going out with and you were vague on purpose."

"I was trying not to hurt your feelings," her voice was getting louder but she still avoided looking at me.

"My best friend is spending time with the guy who left me the day before my father's funeral and you never thought about how that would make me feel?"

"Of course I thought about it! That's why I didn't tell you. It's not like I wanted to spend time with him! He was depressed and Jasper wanted to cheer him up and I wanted to spend time with Jasper," she defended herself. She looked at me with a sad expression

"You spent extra time alone with him in New York and you guys have been inseparable for the past few months. How much more time do you need?" I snapped. "When was the last time we spent any time together?" I asked. Her eyes moved back to the floor and her shoulders slumped forward.

"You didn't tell me you were going out with Emmett. As your assistant and friend, don't you think I had a right to know?"

"Yes, but if you had taken the time and asked, I would've told you. You didn't ask, so I didn't tell you. Instead you were too wrapped up in all things Jasper. Besides, you know, it's only a matter of time before he stops pulling the nice-guy act and becomes the asshole his best friend is." It was a low blow and I knew it the moment I said it.

"That's not fair, Bella, and you know it. Jasper is nothing like Edward. Jasper cares about me!" she yelled. Then her eyes grew large at the realization of what she just said.

I didn't know what to say. I was speechless. All the relief and lightness I had been feeling was suddenly gone. Her words took the wind out of me like a punch to the gut.

"Bella, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it like that," she pleaded.

"No, you're right. Edward doesn't care about me." I thought about what he said earlier. He didn't want to hear what I had to say. He only wanted to explain his side. "I'm gonna go out for a while and I would really appreciate it if you weren't here when I come back." I stood up and grabbed my car keys. I didn't know where I was going, but I sure as hell didn't want to be around Alice right now.

I ended up at a Whole Foods, not even sure how I got there, but cooking had always been one of my methods of calming myself down. I grabbed a cart and started towards the produce. I must have still been lost in my own world because I didn't even notice when I crashed carts with someone.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going," I apologized and looked up to see who I was apologizing to.

"Bella?"

"Rosalie?"

Edward Masen

After the disaster at breakfast we went to pick up Jasper's car from the restaurant. We made small talk about nothing in particular and I don't think things had ever been more awkward between us.

I was about to apologize for something, hell anything, if it would help, when Jasper's phone rang. From his end of the conversation, I knew it was Alice and she was incredibly upset and would be at our house by the time we got back. When we drove up she was sitting on the front steps with her head resting on her knees. Her head snapped up at the sound of the Volvo.

Instead of going through the garage I walked around to the front to see if she was all right. I was met with a very angry glare. Her eyes were narrowed and her lips were pressed together tightly. At a closer look, I could see her eyes were red as if she'd been crying, and she was shaking.

"Hey, uh, are you okay?" I was afraid to get too close to her. She reminded me of an angry squirrel.

"Do I look fucking okay? This is all your fault asshole." She stood and walked over to me.

"What the hell did I do now? I swear I only asked if I could talk to her and she said no. That's it." I held up my hands in surrender and started backing away.

"You left her! You couldn't even wait one day to let your selfish needs and wants get the best of you. You had to leave the day before the fucking funeral?" she yelled. "If I had known you were such a self-centered piece of shit I never would have pushed her towards you."

"You told me to leave, remember? You wouldn't even let me get my own shit. You packed it for me. So don't start this shit with me again, Alice. It's been a long fucking morning and I'm not in the mood to put up with your name-calling." I started toward the house.

"Don't you want to know why I'm here?" she called out in a taunting voice.

I just shrugged.

"Bella kicked me out because I was out with you and Jasper last night." I froze at her words. "Yeah, she thought I picked you and Jasper over her. So because of who your best friend is, I've lost mine." If I was pissed before, I was fucking livid now.

I turned around and walked towards her. "Alice," my voice came out lower than I expected and her eyes widened. "Nobody made you go to dinner last night, and if I remember correctly, you invited yourself. Nobody made you stay in New York for a few extra days while Bella was out here. Nobody made you spend last night, and the past several nights, over here. I don't know what happened this morning, and to be perfectly fucking honest I don't fucking care. Whatever went on between you and Bella is between the two of you and has nothing to do with me. If you want someone to blame, look in the fucking mirror because even I can see you've been a shitty friend." With that I turned around and headed straight for my room.

I jumped online and started looking for vacation packages. I pulled out my phone and called Irina to let her know that I had tried to fix things with Bella, but it would take time. My next call was to Carlisle to let him know I was going on vacation, but I was taking scripts with me as promised. My final call was to Tanya.

I hadn't talked to her much ever since Bella had told me about Tanya being one of Emmett's fuck buddies. The disappointment outweighed everything else when it came to her. I knew my half-sister had promiscuous tendencies, but to stoop so low as to fuck someone she knew was in a committed relationship, was disgusting. I had been avoiding her calls and texts and I'm sure she'd been wondering what was going on. When I called her, she was surprised and thrilled to hear from me. We agreed to meet for dinner. I had so many questions I needed answers to.

Just as I hung up with Tanya, Jasper came barging in my room.

"What the fuck did you say to Alice?" He was seething.

"I said a lot of things to Alice, you'll have to be more specific." I replied coolly. I folded my arms and waited.

"Did you tell her that the reason Bella kicked her out of their house was her own fault?"

"I just pointed out the obvious. Did she happen to mention the bullshit she spouted at me?" His silence was my answer. "Before you go and defend her honor, perhaps you should get the full story from someone who didn't have your dick in her mouth twelve hours ago."

He looked like he was going to say something, but then just nodded. I quickly recounted the exchange. Judging from his reactions, I would guess she had made me out as the bad guy.

"Ed, man, I'm sorry. I'll talk to her," he said.

I shook my head. "Don't worry about it. She can stay here. I'm gonna take off for a while. I need to get away from everything anyway."

"You're running again?" he sighed.

"I'm not running. I can't be around Alice right now." Jasper started to speak but I cut him off, "She's not kicking me out of my own home. I'm choosing to leave. I've got some things to think about and I just need to do it alone, okay?"

"Yeah. Whatever you say. Just call me when you get to where you're going." He gave me an awkward half-man hug and left. I heard the front door close and the house was silent.

After a couple of hours of fruitless searching, I decided to scrap the idea of going on vacation and just check into a hotel. It would also be good idea in case Bella decided to call. I wouldn't want to be across the country when she did.

I gave up on trying to get anything productive done and flopped on the couch and quickly fell asleep in front of the TV. I woke up when I heard Alice and Jasper come in. It sounded as if they were arguing and the last thing I wanted was to be in the path of Alice's anger..

"Edward? You home?" he called out from the entryway.

"Yeah," I called back. I sat up and rubbed my hands over my face to wake up. I saw the time and jumped up. I was going to be late for dinner with Tanya. I moved quickly to get ready.

After a quick shower and shave, I threw on jeans and a T-shirt and double-checked that I had my keys and phone as I made my way out.

"Edward, may I talk to you for a second?" Alice's voice came from behind me. I turned to see her shifting her weight from foot to foot.

"I'm on my way out so I don't have time for any more insults."

"You were right."

I sighed. "I was right?" I repeated, making sure I heard her correctly.

"Yes. Are you going to make me say it again?" She looked frustrated,

"Maybe," I smirked. "What exactly was I right about?"

"About how I treated Bella. I have been a horrible friend and I'm sorry to have taken it out on you. You didn't deserve that."

"Thank you. I appreciate your apology. You guys have a good night." I moved towards the front door but had only managed a few steps before she stopped me again.

"Aren't you going to apologize too?" I rolled my eyes and turned around.

"Jesus," I muttered under my breath. "I have nothing to apologize for. You were the one who was on my stoop this morning and flung insults at me. I merely pointed out the obvious and you just admitted that I was right. So what should I apologize for?" I could feel my anger level rising.

"Even if I was sorry for something concerning you, which I'm clearly not, the fact I'm letting you stay in my place should more than make up for anything you think I should apologize for," I seethed. "So again, I'm leaving. Have a good night." I stormed out the door and slammed it shut behind me. I quickly called Tanya and told her I would be a few minutes late.

"Only ten minutes, that's not too bad," Tanya said as she stood up to greet me. We gave each other a brief kiss on the cheek.

"Yeah, I got held up at home. Sorry about that." I gave her a small smile.

"So what have you been up to?" She asked taking a sip of her water.

"Let's cut the crap, shall we sis?" She nodded.

"Why have you been avoiding me? What happened, Edward?" I could see the hurt in her eyes.

"You're right, I was avoiding you and I owe you an explanation."I took a deep breath. "It's because I had a very interesting conversation with Bella right after the premiere and to be honest I was disgusted and ashamed of you. I didn't know how to talk to you without saying something harsh." I looked down and played with my napkin instead of looking at her.

"What does Bella have to do with me?" My eyes shot to her and I raised my eyebrows in silent question.

"Don't play stupid, sis. You get these little wrinkles around your eyes."

She didn't say anything so I went for a more direct approach. "Okay, let me ask you this. How many times did you fuck Emmett McCarty while he was living with Bella?"

Her face paled and her mouth dropped open.

"He said she was doing the same thing. They had some stupid agreement," she protested.

"Yes, but I thought you were better than that. You of all people know what happens to relationships that involve affairs," I pointed out.

"So you were disgusted and ashamed of me?" she asked quietly.

"It's kinda hard not to be. Knowing my sister was part of the reason Bella's relationship fell apart, it's embarrassing! Only a few people know we're related and if it got out that you were sleeping with Emmett, think of the PR nightmare that could have created."

"From what I've heard, you're fairly good at creating PR nightmares yourself," she said.

"Don't you at least feel any remorse for sleeping with someone else's fiancee?" I was astonished at her nonchalance.

"First of all, they weren't engaged at the time. The moment they got engaged they called off their agreement. Furthermore, we were only together twice and he told me that they were seeing other people," Her voice was getting louder. "I swear I didn't know they were living together."

Silence took over the table. It was clear there wasn't anywhere positive for this conversation to go.

"So...how's Bella doing?" Tanya asked but kept her eyes on the table.

"I don't know." I shrugged.

"Why did you leave? I know for a fact that you didn't have anything going on here."

"I don't know." I ran my fingers through my hair "It just got to be too much too fast."

"You got scared," she said assuredly.

I took a moment and thought about it. Tanya was right. I was downright fucking terrified. Bella and I hardly knew each other, yet I was doing and saying things that conveyed a message I wasn't ready for. When I flew to New York I wasn't thinking, I was just doing what felt right. Then I got in too deep and realized I wasn't ready for any of it.

"You're right," I said.

"Have you apologized?"

"I tried to talk to her this morning but she yelled at me and I asked her to call me when she was ready."

"You're an asshole. You're my brother and I love you, but you're a selfish asshole."

"What the fuck? I know I've screwed up, but I've tried to apologize, and she won't hear me out." I explained what happened that morning.

"I can't say I blame her." She leaned forward and put her elbows on the table resting her chin on her laced fingers.

"Why's that?"

"Let me put it to you from another perspective, okay?" I nodded. "You fly to New York to be by her side when her father dies. You leave because you are scared about how fast things are moving. Now you're getting upset because she won't listen to you?" I remained silent. "Why do you want to apologize, Edward? Really think about it. Why should Bella listen to what you have to say?"

"I want to tell her I'm sorry because I feel bad for leaving her like I did," I answered.

Tanya shook her head and sighed. "You just don't get it, do you? You want to apologize because you feel bad. Did you ever think about how Bella feels? Do you feel bad that she's hurting that you took off? You want to apologize so that you feel better, not to make Bella feel better. Until you see that the world doesn't revolve around you, you need to stay away from her. That's just my opinion though, take it or leave it."

Tanya was right. All I had thought about was that I wanted to explain my actions and make Bella understand. I never once thought about how Bella might need to tell me how she was feeling. How she must have put her trust in me because I made her believe I was ready for that level of commitment. She needed me to lean on and I let her believe she could, and then at the last minute I left her because I couldn't deal with what I had essentially created.

Until now I had only thought about how I awful I was feeling but I never stopped to consider what Bella was going through. If I felt like a piece of shit before, how I felt now was indescribable.

Tanya was right. I needed Bella to absolve me of my guilt to feel better, but it wouldn't do her any good. Even now, I was still only thinking of myself.

"Hey, where'd you go." Tanya waved her hand in my face.

"You're right. So, what do I do now? How do I make this right?"

Tanya gave me a small smile. "You know her better than I do. You're just scared right now, but if you really think about it, I'm sure you'll come up with something."

"Humor me, sis, if you were Bella what would you expect?"

She looked thoughtful for a moment and swallowed. "If it were me, I'd want the grand gesture." She looked at my pointedly before continuing, "However, I get the impression that Bella isn't the grand gesture sort of girl. What she probably wants is a guy who's going to apologize and be genuine and sincere about it."

The rest of dinner passed uneventfully and we caught up with the past month of our lives. I learned that she had been seeing another lawyer in her firm and she was sure things could turn serious with him. Despite my misery and wallowing over Bella, I was happy for her. At least there was one Masen in L.A. who was happy in a relationship.

By the time the bill was settled and we had gone our separate ways I was now positive I wasn't going to on vacation. I was going to stay right where I was and figure out how to apologize to Bella the right way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fic Rec's:
> 
> An Abridged Account by alchemilla mollis
> 
> I Don't Exist by Rachel1042
> 
> The Groupie by JustForkIt


	18. It's Just a Thought

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just a Thought
> 
> A/N: I apologize for the lateness of this chapter. I had fun with this chapter and I hope you all enjoy it too.
> 
> Thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly who puts up with my nonsense and cleans this up and makes it pretty.
> 
> Please see note at bottom...

Bella Swan

The past twenty-four hours felt unreal. Making up with Emmett, the small confrontation with Edward, and kicking Alice out of my house. All of these events happening in such a short time span was enough to make me want to crawl under the covers and not come out. I never thought running into Rosalie Hale would be the highlight of my day, but it was.

When we crashed carts it took a moment for each of us to get over the surprise. The last time I saw her was a month ago at the premiere. She and Emmett seemed to get along but she was quiet around Alice and me. It also could have been the unknown amount of tequila shots Alice and I had that night.

After we exchanged awkward pleasantries and she offered her condolences about Charlie, Rosalie asked if I would mind having coffee with her at a cafe around the corner. I agreed and figured I could come back later.

The moment we walked into Starbucks, heads were turning and people were murmuring. It would be hard not to notice Rosalie's and the way she carried herself with a "look but don't even think about fucking touching me" attitude. We ordered our drinks from a barista who did a fantastic impression of a goldfish and sat down at a corner table.

"So I should probably thank you."

"Thank me? Why?"

"I saw Emmett last night."

"I know."

"You know? How did-" I figured she probably saw the pictures.. "Yeah, I should probably explain that."

"You don't have to explain anything." There was a hint of sadness in her voice.

" "Emmett told me what you said, how you stood up for me when he..." I let my voice trail off.

"When he disclosed your agreement?" she offered. I nodded. "I have to tell you Bella, that it was one of the most disgusting things I've ever heard." I internally cringed at her tone of disdain.

"I know and I'm not going to defend him, but just remember that I had the option to leave and I didn't," I sighed.

"Can I be honest with you?"

"Of course." I couldn't help but brace myself.

"I don't understand what would possess you to stay with someone who treated you like that! You clearly have a good head on your shoulders and you have your shit together, so why on earth would you sell yourself short like that?" She let out a shaky breath and took a sip of her coffee.

"I'm not going to sit here and defend my actions as to why I did or didn't do something. You don't know the complexities of the relationship Emmett and I had and as much as I appreciate you defending me, you shouldn't judge a situation for which you don't have the full details."

She looked down at her cup and spun it around in her fingers. "You're right. I'm sorry. It's not my place."

"I should tell you that Emmett took your words to heart and apologized. He was genuine and I think we'll be back to a solid friendship eventually." I gave her a small smile.

"So that's what last night was about?" She looked hopeful.

"One thing to know about Emmett and me is that we tend to do stupid things without thinking. We were goofing around."

She sat in silence for a moment and finally asked in a low voice, "If you guys are just friends, would you be opposed to me calling him?"

"I wish you would. He kept mentioning you."

"Really?" Her eyes lit up. I nodded. She opened her mouth to say something, but she was cut off by her cell phone. She checked it and apologized that she had to take the call. I waved her off. She left the table and stepped outside. Not a minute later my phone went going off

"Hey, Alec, what can I do for you?"

"Bella? Hey."

"Are you okay? I can barely hear you."

"Uhm yeah. I'm really sorry to bother you on your day off…" he began.

"It's fine. Is there a problem?"

"Actually, I'm not calling about business. I was hoping I could talk to you about something else."

"Of course, are you okay?"

"Never better. Are you going to be around this afternoon?" He sounded nervous.

"Well...yeah."

" I'm in the area and I was hoping I could take you to dinner."

"Hey, dinner sounds great but tonight is short notice. Maybe tomorrow instead? I'd love to see you and Maggie."

I could have sworn I heard him mutter, "She's already got plans, good job jackass." I couldn't be sure. I tried to hold back a small smile.

"Maggie wouldn't come. It would just be us."

I was more than curious to know what was going on. He sounded really strange.

"Is she okay?"

"That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about."

"I'll text you tomorrow and we'll arrange a time and I'll give you my address."

"Sounds great. I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks."

He hung up before I could respond. In the entire time that I'd known Alec, he'd never been this mysterious and dodged my questions. He was making it sound as if I was doing him a favor by spending time with him. Weird.

I stared at my phone trying to figure out what just happened.

"Everything okay?" Rosalie's voice broke me from my trance.

"Yeah, everything's fine, but I need to get going. This was nice." We stood up at the same time.

"Bella." Rosalie placed her hand on my arm, "I'm sorry if I came across as brash, I tend to do that a lot." She offered me a smile.

"Don't worry about it." I smiled back.

"You're sure you don't mind if I give Emmett a call?"

"I encourage you to do it. He deserves to be happy and from what he says, you make him happy."

"Thank you, Bella." She gave me a hug and left. The whole situation had completely thrown me - hell the whole day had me trying to remember which way was up. I walked the short distance back to my car and headed toward home, the groceries forgotten.

Edward Masen

After dinner with Tanya I briefly debated going over to Bella's, but figured that it wouldn't be a good idea. I needed to get my thoughts in order and figure out what I needed to say before I did anything. I had the feeling Bella was never going to call me, so I was already going to be catching her unaware. The last thing I needed was for my thoughts to be a jumbled mess.

When I got home I was thankful to see that all the lights in the house were off and Jasper's car was gone. I just wanted some time to be alone and think.

As I got ready for bed I replayed some of the conversations Bella and I had shared. I had finally gotten her to take down some of her walls, but when she did, I ran away in fear. This time around, if she still wanted me around, things would be different..

I crawled into bed mentally exhausted and tossed and turned the entire night.

Despite the restless sleep I got, I woke up feeling like today was going to be good. That somehow things were going to turn around. I wasn't ready for Mister Rogers to come out and wish me a happy morning, but it felt nice to have a sense of closure.

If I could get Bella to hear me out I would be ecstatic. If she chose to slam the door in my face then at least I would know I had really tried.

I went downstairs to make a pot of coffee, but stopped in my tracks when I saw Alice and Jasper sitting at the dining room table and I was half tempted to turn around and head back upstairs. Instead I took a deep breath and walked past them and into the kitchen.

"Morning," Jasper called from the table.

"Morning."

"You've got a busy day today."

"I'm on vacation."

"Not anymore."

I came out of the kitchen and eyed him skeptically. I also noticed Alice was missing "Why?"

"Carlisle and Irina have both called twice." He looked up and smirked at me.

"What's going on?"

"Bella just called Alice."

"And that concerns me how?" I folded my arms and leaned against the wall.

Jasper sighed and rolled his eyes. "Bella has set up a meeting for you, me, and Alec Connors to meet later this week. It looks like there are going to be some timing issues and they want to make sure that everything falls into place."

"We need a meeting for that? Why not just call and let me know where and when I have to be there?"

"From what Bella said, Connors wants to get to know you better. I think we'll learn more later this week." He turned back to his newspaper.

"Wait a second. You said Carlisle and Irina called too. What did they want?"

Jasper set his newspaper down and looked exasperated. "Carlisle called me to make sure you're reading your scripts because he couldn't get a hold of you. I'd really like to avoid him threatening me so early in the morning so keep your phone on. Irina called because they want you as a presenter of the MTV Movie Awards next month and she wants you to find a date. Her direct orders were for your date to not be someone you're related to."

"What's wrong with Tanya?"

"She's afraid you'll start rumors like Angelina and her brother." I rolled my eyes. It was limited knowledge that Tanya and I were related.

"Do I have to go?" I whined. It was too early to deal with this pre-teen crap.

"Yes. You're going to be working on the Alec Connors book. You know this is bigger than Bourne Identity. Don't fucking blow it. You need all the positive press you can get after...well...you know."

I groaned, "Yeah, I know. I was going to try and talk to her today."

"You might have some luck. Alice said she sounded like she was in a decent mood."

I quickly forgot the need for coffee and ran up the stairs to get ready for the day. It wasn't until I was in the shower that I realized I didn't know where Bella's office was. Then I thought about how I hoped I wouldn't ruin her good mood again..

Bella Swan

I thought about the fight with Alice and decided that I needed to set things straight with her. I remembered doing the same thing when Emmett and I had first started getting serious and I wasn't exactly holding up my end of our friendship either. I wasn't about to make her pick between Jasper and me and she was still doing her job quite well.

After my shower and a quick breakfast I called Alice. There were several things that needed to be taken care of, one of which was arranging for Edward and Alec to get together. Alec had previously expressed turning his book into a collection similar to James Patterson's Alex Cross character. If he did,, Alec wanted to get to know the person who would be bringing his main character to life.

.

After my strained conversation with Alice and our agreement to meet for lunch I was shocked as hell when twenty minutes later Edward's name popped up on my display. I wasn't sure what to do. I went to press the ignore button but instead I actually answered.

Fuck.

I took a deep breath, "Hello?"

"Bella?" There was a pause, and then, "Holy shit, I didn't think you'd answer."

"Well I did."

"Uhm, yeah. Thank you. Listen, I know you said that you would call me when you were ready to talk, but please, just give me five minutes and if you don't like what I have to say you can tell me to go to hell," he pleaded.

"Why should I give you any chance at all?"

"You shouldn't." His voice was so quiet I almost missed it. For a split second I felt bad for him.

"You're right and I'm probably setting myself up for more disappointment. I have plans tonight, so if you can do it tomorrow that would be better. I'll be around in the afternoon."

"Bella-"

"You'll have five minutes. Please don't make me regret this."

"Thank you so much. I promise you won't-" I ended the call before he could say anything else. I could only hope that he was right.

"So..." I began.

"I'm sorry," we both blurted at the same time.

"I am so sorry. I should have never said those things to you, I didn't mean them," Alice told her salad. "I've been thinking about what you said and you were right. I purposely didn't tell you that I was going out with Jasper and Edward. I should have been more upfront with you."

"I was vague too. I should have told you I was having dinner with Emmett. It's not fair to be mad for something I did too."

"Also I'm really sorry about what I said about Edward not caring about you. That's clearly not the case and it came out completely wrong. He does care for you. I'm pretty sure he's in lo-"

"Stop right there." I held up my hand. "Please don't say what I think you're going to, because you're wrong." I shook my head when it looked like she was going to argue. "He wouldn't have taken off like he did without explanation if he cared. He would have at least stuck around until after the funeral, but he couldn't even do that." I felt the familiar burning feeling creep back behind my eyes; I tried to mentally will the threatening tears away.

"You haven't seen what I've seen for the past few days. If he's not moping, he's brooding and neither one is particularly fun to be around. He also made some good points about me and I have a few more things I need to apologize for."

"Okay?"

"I have been so wrapped up in all things Jasper that I never even considered that you would need me after we came back. I don't think I've once asked how you were holding up." Her shoulders were slumped like the weight of the world was resting on her tiny frame. "I feel like an absolute asshole that I stayed in New York after you left. It never even occurred to me that you might need or want someone around. Instead all I thought about was my new boyfriend and neglected my best friend. I haven't been there for you and I wish there was something I could do to make it up to you."

"And Edward told you this?"

"Yeah."

"You had to have someone point it out to you?"

"Look, I admitted to being a crap-burger.."

"You're right. We were both crap-burgers. We both suck at being direct, so let's just call it a day, okay?"

"Just like that?" She looked confused.

"I don't like fighting with you, Ali. We've known each other long enough to move past being childish . Just promise me you won't mislead me and I promise to do the same."

Alice's face brightened. "You have my word."

And just like that we were fine.

The rest of our lunch was spent with me filling her in on what happened over the weekend with Emmett and Rosalie. I didn't tell her about my plans with Alec only because I wasn't even sure what was happening.

Edward Masen

I didn't care that Bella hung up on me. What I did care about was that she actually fucking answered. I went back downstairs with what could only be described as a shit-eating grin.

"I take it she answered?"

"She agreed to let me talk to her tomorrow." Jasper's mouth dropped open. He clearly didn't expect that.

"Wow."

"I know."

"Please don't fuck it up." I heard Alice's voice come from behind me.

I turned around and sighed, not looking for a fight. "Alice, I'm not in the mood."

"Neither am I. I'm just going to give you a piece of advice." She put her hands on her hips and stared at me. "What you do with it is up to you." She took a deep breath and continued, "You are going over there to apologize, but let her lead the conversation. Bella knows it's not her fault that you tucked tail and ran. What she doesn't know is why. As far as she's concerned you don't care about her, at all." Her final words were like a punch to the gut. How could she believe that? Did she truly not believe anything I had said?

I started to explain but she held up her hand to stop me. "I'm not done."

"Alice," Jasper's warning tone came from behind me.

"Calm down, I'm almost done. I may not be on the greatest terms with her but she is still my boss and I need to be on time." She turned her attention back to me. "All I ask is that you don't mess up. Make sure you know everything you want to say before you go over there but don't sound rehearsed. Bella can detect bullshit a mile away. How you slipped under her radar the first time is astounding."

"You just had to get that in there." I rolled my eyes. My body language may have said that I was brushing her off, but secretly I was grateful for her advice. It wasn't a plan of attack that I wanted, but I did need to sit down and have a strategy. I had always figured that a simple "I'm sorry" wouldn't be good enough, but I hadn't put more thought into it until now. I had a little more than twenty-four hours to figure out how to get her back.

Bella Swan

After I left the restaurant I decided to finish my day working from home. I didn't even realize how late it was until I heard my Blackberry chime with a text message from Jake. Earlier in the day Alec and I agreed that we would go for an early dinner. I had exactly an hour to get ready. I quickly showered and threw on a pair of dark jeans, a dark purple top, and a pair of flats. Alec had assured me wherever we were going would be completely casual.

Alec showed up at exactly six looking better than I had seen him in a long time. I couldn't help but suspect something was up.

We didn't say much after our greetings. He suggested pizza which was fine with me since I had nothing to offer. As we walked to a little hole-in-the-wall pizza place a couple of blocks away, we talked.

"Not that I'm complaining about spending time with you Al, but you gotta give me something. I took a deep breath and continued, "What's with the vagueness?"

"I need to tell you something and I need you to switch off the manager part of your brain and be my friend. Please tell me you can do that," he said.

"I'm listening."

"Maggie and I got a divorce," he said after a pregnant pause.

"You what? When did this happen?" I was shocked. This was the last thing I had expected to hear. Then something occurred to me. "You said you already got it?"

"Yes. I signed the final papers Friday."

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"You had your own crap going on and I didn't want to bother you with my problems. Besides, it didn't seem real until the papers were signed."

"So what happened?"

"It was almost a year ago today she just told me it was over. She left. I never saw it coming, you know? I thought things were perfect and then all of sudden she was gone. No explanation or letter detailing what I did wrong. Now I see that it was for the best and if I'm honest with myself, it was a long time coming. I feel as if a huge weight has been taken off my shoulders."

His words hit a little too close to home. I took a deep breath and nodded in acknowledgement. As much I knew it wasn't my fault that Edward left me, it reminded me of what happened with Emmett. I could relate to Alec because he had done the same thing. The one difference was that he wanted to apologize or at least let me hear him out. When I came had come to the realization that it wasn't my fault and we'd been growing apart for some time, Edward was an asshole I felt like a pressure had been lifted off my chest.

We walked in silence the rest of the way. We were seated in the back and ordered a pitcher of beer immediately. Neither of us were particularly big drinkers, but Alec insisted he was celebrating.

"I know exactly what you're going through." I reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "It's only when you gain some distance from the relationship that you can see what was really wrong with it."

"Yeah. I've seen the tabloids. Looks like a lot has been happening with you too. What's really going on?"

For the next half hour I recounted everything that happened with Emmett and Edward. It felt therapeutic..

"So that's what happened," I said, finishing up just as our pizza arrived and I was thankful for the timing. It felt good to get it all off my chest and vent, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. It felt like I was reliving the lies that Edward fed me. He had given an Oscar-worthy performance of convincing me he cared.

"I'm really sorry. You deserve so much better than that." He didn't look all that sympathetic. No, he looked pissed.

"It's not your fault, but thanks." I poured myself the last of the pitcher and waved the empty one in the air to signal the waitress for another one.

"You shouldn't have had to go through that." He reached across the table and grabbed my hand and brushed his thumb over my knuckles while giving me a soft apologetic smile.

The waitress brought over a new pitcher. He un-joined our hands so he could each pour us a new glass. He waited for the waitress to leave before starting again. "Sometimes I wonder if you hadn't been with Emmett, and you were single when I was single what would have happened between us. We've always worked well together and I'm still not entirely sure what was with you and Emmett and your whole sharing deal, but I think we should give it a shot. "

Not sure what to say, I reeled from the shock by shoving half a piece of scalding cheese pizza in my mouth.

"That was sexy, Swan."

I continued chewing so I could process his words. I had thought about Alec and me together in the past. We'd always had great chemistry, the timing had never been right to explore it. Shortly after Alec and I had started "seeing each other" just as Emmett was seeing his girls, he met Maggie and fell for her. Since my split with Emmett I had never considered Alec because he was happily married. Now things were different.

"So what do you think?"

I swallowed and held up my finger to indicate that I needed a moment. I took a long drink of beer and sighed. "I think you've had enough to drink and your verbal filter is weakening."

"Are you denying that I'm right?"

"I'm denying you more alcohol."

"Don't be like that, Bella. You're no longer with Emmett. Edward left at an important moment in your life, and Maggie left me right before my first book is about to become a movie. We're both finally single. We should go for it." His voice was getting louder than I was comfortable with, not to mention he was starting to slur his words.

"Your divorce was finalized seventy-two hours ago," I pointed out.

"Legally it was, but I've been single for a while. God knows Maggie hasn't been worried about legalities. I suppose it's a blessing to be an author over an actor or socialite. Nobody gives a damn about your social life." He winked at me.

"Must be nice."

"Since when you do have a social life? From what I hear, you're a hermit."

"Is that why you asked me to dinner? You're taking pity on the lonely socialite?" I laughed.

"I asked you to dinner because I enjoy your company and I was hoping that I could persuade you let me take you out officially." I'm not entirely sure why, but my heart started beating a little faster.

"I dunno, Alec. We're working together. I don't want things to be complicated." I shrugged and avoided meeting his eyes.

"Things only become complicated when you let them." He could see my hesitancy, so he added, "think about it, okay? I'm just asking for a chance to throw my hat in the ring."

"It'll be a lonely hat," I muttered. I saw the surprise on his face but he didn't say anything.

"So what now?" I asked.

"Now, we stop drinking and eating and go back to your house so we can sober up. Then I am going to drive home and I will meet with you later in the week so we can finalize everything with Masen."

"Sounds good to me." Alec threw a few bills on the table and stood. He offered his arm which I gladly took, partially because the alcohol hit me all at once, but also because I liked that he was being gentlemanly. It felt nice to be treated with kindness.

We walked in silence for almost a block before Alec spoke. "I don't want you to feel pressured. I know you have a lot going on right now with work and Charlie. The last thing I want is for you to feel uncomfortable. I'm just asking for a chance to be there for you in more than a friendly capacity."

I knew what Alec was saying was genuine, but it reminded me of what Edward had said, "I'll take whatever you're willing to give." If I had known then that it was a crock of shit I wouldn't have let things go as far as they did. Not that we made it very far to begin with.

I didn't doubt Alec's sincerity, but I hadn't doubted Edward's either.

"I don't know if I'm ready, but I promise I'll think about it."

"Just remember, Love comforteth like sunshine after rain. You need more sunshine."

"Thank you." He reached for my hand and brushed his lips over my knuckles. I couldn't resist the urge to smile. I couldn't think of anything to say, "You're welcome" would have sounded lame, so I simply nodded and looked to the ground. I did notice that he didn't let go of my hand. I liked it.

We continued walking to my house hand-in-hand, laughing and joking about everything and nothing. We'd always had a great time and I was reminded of that Being with Alec was so easy.

We eventually made it up my driveway and were sitting on the front porch still talking, when I let out a yawn. The day had taken its toll on me; I was physically and mentally exhausted.

"I would invite you in, but-"

"You have an early morning?" he guessed.

I snickered. "Yeah."

Alec glanced at his watch and stood up, pulling me with him. "I've gotta get going. I'm a bachelor now. You were just the first on my list. I've got a lot of women to proposition before the night is over.."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Right. Well you go enjoy being a bachelor, I'm gonna go to bed. Alone."

.A look of sadness crossed his face. "Yeah, me too," he said quietly. Then his face brightened a little, "you know, we could easily solve this problem…" he let his voice trail off and flashed me a wicked smile.

"You're an ass," I chuckled and slapped his shoulder. "I'll see you later this week, okay?"

"Fine," he let out a dramatic sigh. He wrapped his arms around me and drew me into a tight hug. "I had fun tonight. Thank you." He placed a kiss on my forehead and pulled back. He dropped his head and slowly gave me a kiss on the cheek, letting his nose graze my ear. I let out an involuntary noise of approval. He pulled away and gave me a knowing smirk.

"Bye, Alec," I called out as he walked away. "Hey!" He turned around and looked at with me curiosity. "You don't need to quote Shakespeare to get the girl."

"Oh yeah?"

"Just a bit of advice for the bachelor from the bachelorette."

"Bye, Bella," he chuckled.

I watched him climb into his car and drive away. I went to bed shortly after and had fell into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning I woke up with a pounding headache and groaned at the light coming in from the windows. Bits and pieces of the night before came back in flashes. By the time I made coffee and forced myself to eat some greasy bacon, the whole evening had replayed in my mind.

I couldn't help but feel excited and giddy. The last time I'd been properly asked on a traditional date was when Emmett got down on one knee in front of a Madison Avenue coffee shop. This was not something I had ever really felt around Edward. Around him I was always nervous or irritated. There were times that I would feel calm, but it seemed those times were too far and few-between that they didn't count.

I had just finished gathering everything I needed for my morning meetings when I was startled by the doorbell. It was only ten in the morning and I wasn't expecting Edward until the afternoon. I figured it was Alice so I yelled for her to come in. Instead the doorbell sounded again. I opened it to find a sheepish-looking delivery man.

He handed me a long white box and asked me to sign for it. I brought the box into the kitchen and stared at it as if it would bite me. I slowly slid the lid off and saw a gorgeous white orchid. Along with the flower was a note that read:

You deserve more sunshine in your life. Thank you for last night-A.

P.S. I've always wanted to say that.

I went to my computer and looked up the meaning of white orchids. According the website, white orchids meant "thinking of you". I could only think of a few occasions when Emmett ever gave me flowers, but there was always a reason. He never gave me anything 'just because'. If I thought my smile couldn't get any wider, I was wrong. Alec wasn't trying to get me to do anything I didn't want and he wasn't feeding me lines like Edward.

I was still somewhat hesitant to agree to him, but I kept thinking that it would only be one night. Nothing bad could come from that. The one thing I learned from being around Edward was not to put all of myself into something I wasn't entirely sure was going to go somewhere. The last thing I wanted or needed was to finally be willing and be let down again. I didn't know if I would be able to hold it together.

I glanced down at the folders on top of my bag and decided to spend the day working from home. I called Alice and told her she could forward all my calls to my cell and that I would still take the two conference calls.

I was fortunate that my schedule was still light. Many of my clients were friends and knew Charlie personally and understood that I was still mourning. Some people cry, some people get angry. What I found helped more than anything was work. If I was able to work hard I would be respecting Charlie's memory and continuing to expand on what he had worked so hard to create. I wanted him to be proud of me.

I could feel the tears starting to fall as I thought about Charlie and quickly wiped them away.

I had only been working for a few hours when I gave up. I put everything away and thought about what to do for the afternoon. Alice had plans to meet Jasper's parents, so she wouldn't be home. I looked at the clock and saw that it was nearly afternoon. I never told Edward what time he could stop by, but remembering how anxious he was to talk to me I figured he would be on my doorstep at twelve sharp. I got nervous and briefly debated as to whether or not to make lunch for two, but quickly nixed the idea.

He was the one who was coming to apologize. I didn't owe him a damn thing.

Edward Masen

When Bella told me that she had plans for the night I instantly thought the worst. At least, what would be the worst for me. My mind went through several different scenarios before I decided that she was probably just backed up with work.

I spent the rest of the day pacing back and forth and trying to read scripts. I called Tanya and asked for her advice and she told me that she couldn't tell me what to say and called me hopeless. I ran my mind back through everything Alice had said.

What would I say to her? A simple apology wouldn't work..

I knew I wanted her. I missed her presence and the way she could just calm me down. I wanted the opportunity to be with her and genuinely get to know her and how her mind worked. I wanted to be the one to comfort her and make her smile. I was willing to do whatever it took to be the one she fell asleep thinking about at night.

I couldn't tell her that. I didn't want to scare her off. Instead I would offer whatever she would be willing to take from me. I was fully aware of the irony of my words. How many times had I told her the same thing and it turned out I unknowingly lied.

I went to bed that night, but I hardly slept. Scenarios kept running through my mind, ranging from her slamming the door in my face to her forgiving me completely and asking me to stay the night. I knew the latter was nearly impossible, but I needed something positive to hold onto.

My sleep that night was restless at best. I had nightmares that I couldn't remember and I'd wake up covered in sweat. My anxiety had now gotten to the point where it was out of control. Around three in the morning I took a couple of sleeping pills and passed out shortly after. I didn't wake up until it was almost too late.

Bella Swan

Noon came and went. Edward was a no-show. So much for 'eagerness'.

I briefly checked my phone at two to see if he had maybe sent a text message, but there was nothing.

At three-thirty I was getting frustrated. I felt like a hostage in my own home. I didn't have plans to go anywhere but thinking that I shouldn't leave just in case he came by was making me angry.

By four-thirty I had made a decision. I called Alec and told him I would be open to a discussion about us. I started thinking of the different ways the afternoon could end. My general anger towards Edward faded and was replaced by anticipation. As the afternoon wore on, the anticipation slowly left and anger took its place once again.

I had fallen asleep and woke up to a rapid knocking on the front door. I glanced at the clock and saw it was almost five-thirty.

I opened the door and was met with the sight of a very frantic-looking Edward. My anger dissipated when I saw him standing there in rumpled clothes, unshaven and his hair sticking out everywhere. I almost pitied him.

"Bella, I am so sorry I'm late. I overslept and I would have been here sooner but the damn pills were stronger than I thought and I didn't eat anything last night-"

"Five minutes starts now." I gave him my best menacing stare and folded my arms waiting for him to continue.

"Right, five minutes. May I please come in? I'd rather not do this on your front steps."

I nodded and moved to allow him access to the entryway.

I used the moment to take a good look at his appearance. He looked horrible. He had dark circles under his eyes despite that he said he'd overslept. His hair was disheveled from what I could only guess was running his hands through it like he was doing now.

"Bella?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah. Go ahead."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> E/N:
> 
> Sorry to leave it here, but trust me that it is for a good reason.
> 
> I would love to hear what you all think! Do you love Alec or do you hate him?
> 
> Will Edward finally say the right thing or screw it up again? Is he going to be too late?
> 
> Thanks again for reading and reviewing, and if you are new to the story, please let me know how you found it!


	19. It's Just Alec

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just Alec
> 
> Thank you all so much for your patience with this chapter! The response from last chapter was overwhelming and I thank every single person who reviewed and gave their opinions on Alec and Edward. Many of you had very strong opinions about Alec and doubted his motives. A decent portion of this chapter is Alec POV. I hope you all like him, I know I love him... for now.
> 
> To my beta Irritable_Grizzzly-I couldn't have done this chapter without you. Literally. Ha!
> 
> As usual...Twilight is not mine, however I do own the P90x series which is kicking my ass.

Edward Masen

We were sitting directly opposite each other in her family room in total silence for a minute but I'm sure seemed more like hours,until Bella cleared her throat.

"Well?"

"I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry for getting scared and leaving you when you when you needed me the most, and for not giving you the space you've asked for. I've been doing a lot of thinking and I know why I left and it has nothing to do with you and everything do with me."

"I figured as much." Her tone was cold and unfeeling.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I know it wasn't because of me. I heard you talking to Jasper about an 'exit strategy'. It was your timing that hurt. If you couldn't handle it, you should have told me. I just don't understand why you flew all that way to be with me. I didn't ask you to.

"I wanted to be there for you. That's the truth. Then I just got scared. Things were moving so fast and it just hit me all at once that maybe I wasn't ready.

She began to cry and put her face in her hands.

"Please tell me what you want me to do," I pleaded.

"It doesn't matter what I want. You'll just wind up leaving, and then we'd have to do this again." She raised her head and looked at me. She looked terrible, her eyes were red and her nose was a snotty mess.

"Tell me what you want and I'll do it. If you really want me to go then I'll leave and you won't ever hear from me again. If you want me to stay, I'll stay."

My throat was dry and it was getting difficult to talk.

"God, I hate to ask this, but do you have any water?"

"In the fridge. Would you please grab one for me too?"

I was going to the refrigerator when I saw a tall white orchid on the counter. I read the card propped next to it and felt all the blood rushed from my face. Who was "A" and why the hell was he or she thanking her for last night? She was supposed to be working!

No asshole, that's what you convinced yourself to make yourself feel better.

Maybe "A" stood for Alice, but I knew in my heart that wasn't the truth, so I swallowed the lump forming in my throat, grabbed the bottles and rushed back. I handed her a bottle and sat next to her. She didn't say anything about our proximity. Instead she stared at me.

"I'm genuinely sorry for any pain and heartache I caused you. I hate that you think I'm going to take off running at a moment's notice, but I hate myself even more for doing it. I want to do whatever it takes to make it up to you and if I can't do that... I…" I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, "wantustostartover," I rushed out.

I opened my eyes to see hers were closed. She sat there and I just held my breath and waited.

"No." She shook her head.

"No?" I repeated. Her rejection of my apology I could handle, but rejecting me... I couldn't remember the last time I had cried genuine tears but I knew they were coming by the tingling feeling behind my nose and eyes. I only hoped I could hold them back until I left. It didn't hit me until the moment she said "no" that her acceptance on any level meant more to me than I had thought it would.

"We can't just start over because too much has happened."

I waited for her to continue.

"Let me be clear. I don't trust you but for some unexplainable reason, I want to. You said repeatedly that you would take whatever I could give you, so I'm telling you right now that I can only give you my friendship and it's something you'll have to work for." She paused. "If you really mean what you say, then you'll accept my proposal."

"Friends," I said slowly, making sure I heard her right. I could handle being friends with hopes of being more.

"Friends," she repeated. "Is that something you're willing accept, because i need to know right now if you can't." She looked nervous, her eyes looking everywhere but at me.

"Bella, I will do whatever it takes to be with you in any way possible. If you want to start as friends and go from there, it's more than I what I expected."

"No, you're not listening to me." A flash of annoyance crossed her face. "I said we could work toward being friends."

My heart sank. I wasn't starting at zero, I was starting in the fucking negative. I would have to work at earning her trust.

Six weeks ago I would have told any other woman to go fuck herself. However, Bella wasn't just any other woman and I had put myself in in this situation. I could throw in the towel and leave and take the easy way out, or I could man up and work my ass off in the hopes that one day we could work toward being a constant in each other's lives. I had promised that I would do whatever it took. I could do this.

Bella Swan

I could see him mulling it over and I was getting angry. I was about to tell him to go to hell when he agreed.

"Okay. These past few weeks without you have been hell. If this means I can see you, I'll accept your conditions."

To say I doubted his sincerity would be an understatement, but going off of what Alice had told me, and his persistence to clear the air, my resolve had weakened. I would also be lying if I said his tenacity wasn't somewhat appealing. If I was able to look past my anger, there was something about him that was endearing.

I glanced at the clock and saw it was almost six thirty and I still hadn't eaten anything. My stomach growled in recognition and I knew it was time to kick Edward out

"I don't know about you, but I'm starving," Edward stated.

"Yeeeeeeah," I said slowly.

"Would you like to grab dinner? Friends do that right?" He stood up and held his hand out. I sat staring at it like it was a snake about to bite me. "Or not..." he pulled his hand back and shoved them both in his pockets and looked at the ground.

I finally came out of my fog and realized that despite everything, he'd apologized and I'd accepted. His offer of dinner was sincere and I was acting petty and rude.

"Sorry. My emotions are kind of all over the place right now. I'm not thinking straight."

"I understand. I guess I'll go then. Would it be all right if I call you sometime this week? Maybe we could meet for lunch or something?"

I nodded.

Cue the awkward silence. "Right," he finally spoke, running his hand through his hair as he headed for the door. I got up and followed him. He abruptly turned around and crashed into me, the force of his chest pushing me against wall. He stumbled over my feet and fell slightly forward, causing his face to be inches from mine, his hands, on either side of my head, bracing himself against the wall.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. I did the same. When I opened my eyes I saw that he hadn't moved and his gaze flickered from my mouth up to my eyes. I had the advantage of being much shorter and was able to avert my gaze. I tried to ignore the way his t-shirt pulled over his shoulders and the woodsy scent that accompanied him when I took a deep breath.

"Bella," his voice was low.

"Yeah?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah, you?"

He swallowed hard, "I'm good." He pushed off the wall and headed for the door, but then he suddenly turned and walked back to me, pulling me into his arms and giving me a bone-crushing hug, pinning my arms by my side.

"Thank you," he whispered into my hair. "You have no idea how much tonight meant to me. I don't deserve you at all. I promise you won't regret this."

I didn't realize it until now but I needed to hear and accept Edward's apology just as much as he needed to give it. Knowing it wasn't my fault was one thing, but to hear it confirmed was another.

Edward continued to hold me. I couldn't say anything. His presence was overwhelming me and my heart beat faster. With Alec the night before, it was exciting, yet familiar. With Edward, it was different. We hadn't known each other for nearly as long, but the connection we'd had since the beginning was calm and soothing. I did notice that as we spent more time around each other, our connection had become less calm and more intense. I hadn't allowed myself to think about the good times since he'd left..

I slowly moved my arms from my side and wrapped them around his waist. I rested my forehead on his chest and nodded in acknowledgement.

"Please call me," he murmured. He pulled back and studied my face, giving me a small smile. Then, without uttering another word, he turned and left.

I brought myself out of my fog when my stomach growled again. I took the hint and went into the kitchen to make something to eat. I moved toward the fridge to get the fixings for a salad when Alec's orchid caught my eye. I suddenly panicked. Surely Edward had seen it, along with the note. Then my panic was replaced by a touch of smugness at the thought that he knew he wasn't my only option.

I brushed my thoughts off to the side as I quickly fixed my dinner. Tonight instead of wallowing or working, I would think of Edward and our good times together. The brief conversations, the kiss after the premiere, his kidnapping me to his beach house, and the night before he left and how his fingers felt on my skin.

Edward Masen

I walked out her front door at a quickened pace and threw myself into the driver's seat. I made it a few blocks away before I closed my eyes and inhaled Bella's scent on me. To the casual observer, it would appear that I was sleeping or doing some deep meditation. Nobody would be able to see that my pants were a bit more snug in the zipper area. I resumed driving and a few minutes later I was home. When I opened the door I saw Alice and Jasper making out on the couch. They reluctantly pulled apart when I came in.

"Seriously guys, Alice is staying in the guest house and Jasper, you have your own bedroom. If you two can't find a way to keep the PDA in one of those places, maybe you should get a place of your own." I didn't bother waiting for a reply. I threw my keys on the end table and kept walking toward the stairs.

"I take it she accepted your apology?" Alice spoke from behind me. I turned around and stared at her.

"Yes."

Alice stood there subtly fixing her shirt, waiting for more details. "And?"

"And what?"

"Well what happened?" She folded her arms and straightened her shoulders as if she was trying to be intimidating.

"She's your friend. If you want to know, you should ask her. What happens between Bella and me is none of your business. "

"But-but I gave you advice!" she cried.

"Yes, you did. Thank you very much. It worked out well." I refused to give her any information. I remembered there were a couple of times that Alice had crossed the line into Bella's personal business and she had been furious. I was just getting on pseudo-good terms with Bella and the last thing I needed to do was divulge our private discussion to Alice.

"You aren't going to tell me anything?" she pouted. I guess she was trying a new tactic.

"Alice, let me be clear, okay?" She nodded. "I'm not Jasper. Pouting and sticking out your bottom lip won't work on me."

"Hey!" I heard Jasper yell.

I chuckled and continued, "We are not friends. You are dating my best friend and I'm trying to salvage some sort of relationship with your best friend. I'm under no obligation to tell you anything. In the past forty-eight hours you have managed to yell and insult me and then give me half-assed apologies. I thank you for what you said yesterday. It helped. Consider us even."

I didn't give her an opportunity to respond and I turned and went to my room. At one point I was hungry but no longer felt the urge to eat. Bella rejecting my dinner offer was insulting, but not surprising. What had surprised me was her physical reaction to our bodies colliding. I pretended not to notice how her breathing sped up and how she tried to look at everything but me. It gave me hope that we could be more than friends if I could physically affect her like that. However, I still needed to get her to trust me and that was going to be my first priority.

I stepped into the shower and washed off the day. I stood under the hot water, letting it the spray relax my back and shoulder muscles. I braced my hands against the wall like I had at Bella's and imagined her underneath me. I felt myself harden to the point where I was going to need a release,

I grabbed the bar of soap and lathered myself till the friction and lather created a warm and slick feeling. I fisted my length and slid my hand from the base to tip several times.. I let out a low moan as I thought of Bella and thrust into my hand three more times before I came hard against the shower wall. I finished cleaning myself and the wall, and then got out.

I dried off and threw on a pair of basketball shorts and tank and went downstairs. Jasper was sitting on the couch without Alice. He glared at me.

"What's going on?" I tried to be casual as I flopped on the couch next to him. "I thought you were going out to dinner with Ma and Pa Whitlock?"

"Would it kill you to be nice to Alice?" Jasper spat.

"I could say the same for her," I shrugged.

"You're always snapping at her."

"Well maybe if she learned to keep her mouth shut or mind her own damn business then I could find a reason to be nice. Until then, keep her out of my way."

"Just try, okay?" he asked. "She means a lot to me and it would be great if you two could at least try to play nice."

"I take it you gave her the same schpiel?"

He nodded.

I sighed, "Fine then, I'll play nice, but the next time she attacks me I can't be held responsible for saying something you don't like."

"Fair enough." We gave each other a fist bump and Jasper turned up the volume on the TV.

Alec Connors

I had literally stared at my phone for two days hoping to hear from Bella. When she called and said she would be willing to give me a chance I felt a mixture of emotions I hadn't felt in a long time; Excitement, hope, and nervousness.

I hadn't been interested in any woman since Maggie left and seeing Bella had reminded me how gorgeous and wonderful she was. The way she dealt with Cullen's chauvinistic attitude was how I remembered her before she and Emmett became a serious couple.

Their ridiculous arrangement was insulting to Bella. After we'd given in to each other, we'd agreed the chemistry was there, but the guilt ate away at us and we agreed to stay friends. Shortly after, I'd met Maggie and fell in love. Not too long after that, Emmett pulled his head out of his ass, somewhat, and proposed to Bella.

When I had heard the wedding was called off and Bella was moving to California, I was ecstatic. She had become a close friend and even though we didn't talk every day, we always could pick up where we left off. There was never any awkwardness. It was about that time I was served with divorce papers.

I had dealt with the emotions that came with going through a split and thought I was ready to start dating casually again. I hadn't been single in a long time and didn't want to say anything until I was sure the divorce would be finalized. It happened the day that Bella stepped in for Tyler at the meeting. I had heard the rumors about Bella and Edward Masen, but never saw anything tangible and I had gathered the courage to finally talk to her.

My opportunity was blown when Masen came rushing out of the restaurant and kissed her. I gracefully exited the picture. I had officially resigned all hope after Edward flew to New York to be with her for Charlie's funeral.

The day the pictures of Emmett re-proposing to Bella came out, I knew something was up. I did notice Masen was missing the day of the funeral, and my curiosity motivated me to call and find out exactly what was going on.

Now I was waiting for Edward and Jasper in a bar in some area of LA I wasn't familiar with. Edward Masen had a hell of a talent and I knew he had could bring my books to life, so I had to keep reminding myself to remain professional and keep my personal feelings out of it. The problem was that this guy hurt someone I cared about. It was going to be hard to shake my predisposed impression.

If the hour or so I spent with Edward ended up being a complete disaster, at least I had dinner with Bella to look forward to. I had already knocked back one vodka tonic in an attempt to calm myself down so I wouldn't punch him.

"Alec, hey!" I heard Edward call out to me.

I stood and shook Edward's hand and introduced myself to Jasper. He seemed like a nice enough guy, and I knew that he was someone who'd been a friend to Masen and wound up becoming his manager. I felt a bit easier knowing that he had nothing but Edward's best interest at heart.

After a few minutes of casual and superficial conversation I was ready to ask Edward the important questions.

"So tell me, have you read any of the other books in the series?"

"Are you kidding?" Jasper cut in. "He's read them all so many times and is a big enough fan I had to convince him not to get your autograph at our first meeting," he laughed.

"You are such a dick." Edward glared at him. "It's true though, I love the books and would always read them when Carlisle wasn't shoving another script in my hand."

We talked about the books, the series and how I wanted to see everything translated onto the screen.

We were interrupted by Jasper's phone buzzing. He said it was his girlfriend and apologized for the interruption as he left the table to answer his call. I notice Edward rolled his eyes and I asked him about it.

"Don't like the girlfriend?"

He sighed, "Remember what Thumper said?"

I looked at him quizzically.

"If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," he grinned and shook his head.

"Gotcha."Then my phone chimed. I answered it without looking at the caller ID and was pleased to hear Bella's voice.

"Hey," I greeted. "What's going on?"

"Today has been hellish to say the least. Please tell me we're still on for dinner?"

"Absolutely."

"Excellent." I heard her sigh in relief.

"I'm still in a meeting, I'll call you when I leave, okay?"

"I'm so sorry, I didn't think you were still with them. I'll see you soon."

"I'm looking forward to it.."

I hung up with her and stared at my phone. I couldn't help but feel a smile at the mixture of feelings rising again.

"Good call?" Edward asked.

"Hmm...oh, yeah," I said as I put my phone away.

"You're married right? How long has it been?" he asked. I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of me. Rarely did anyone ask about Maggie anymore. The only people who knew were our families and very close friends. We had agreed not to make our split public, but that didn't mean it wouldn't get out eventually.

"Actually, I'm divorced. Together for four years, married for two and a half." It felt odd to say the words, as if signing the papers hadn't made it real enough.

"Oh, shit. I'm sorry. I didn't know," he sounded apologetic.

"The papers were just signed. Nobody does." I shrugged, trying to play it off casually.

Jasper came back to the table and apologized again for his absence. "Alice, man, once she gets talking she just doesn't stop," he laughed.

"Alice Brandon? Bella's assistant?"

Jasper perked up. "Yeah. I'm seeing her."

"You've got your hands full with that one."

"You have no idea," he laughed again. At this point we had been drinking enough that I wasn't sure if he was naturally this happy or if it was the alcohol talking.

I realized I needed to get going so I wouldn't be late for Bella. "You guys live in this area, right?" They both nodded. "Is there a flower shop around here?"

"I think I saw one a couple of blocks away," Jasper offered..

"I hope their orchids are nice. I'm really picky," I said.

"Orchids?" I looked up to see Edward choking on his drink.

"You all right?" Jasper pounded on his back.

He took a long pull from his beer and held up his hand. "I'm good," he said hoarsely.

"I've got a dinner date, so I'm afraid this is going to be it for me. Jasper, it was nice meeting you. Edward, it was great to get to know you. I think we're going to have a good time in Chicago in a couple of months. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call." Jasper and I stood and shook hands. Edward didn't stand and looked visibly shaken.

Then he suddenly jumped up from his seat and roughly grabbed my hand. "It was great to see you again, Alec. Have a fantastic evening." His tone was almost sarcastic and it seemed as if he was forcing himself to be cordial. I brushed it off. Actors were temperamental.

I was able to find the florist and got to the restaurant on time.

Bella Swan

"You look beautiful," Alec said as he handed me another orchid and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself." He looked handsome in a blue polo that matched his eyes and a pair of faded jeans. I took his arm and let him lead me to our table where he had a glass of Merlot waiting for me.

"I needed this, thank you." I raised my glass in thanks and we lightly clinked them together.

After discussing my day I thought about how I could bring up the meeting he had with Edward. On a professional level I wanted to find out how it went, but this was my personal time I was trying like hell to turn off my work mentality. Thankfully he brought it up first.

He talked about how much he liked Jasper and half-jokingly pitied him for being with Alice. He also kept mentioning how well things went with Edward. He was truly excited about the upcoming project and I was excited for him.

"Well I'm glad you like him. It will make everything so much easier in Chicago."

"I wish you were going to be there too,"

"Afraid you'll miss me?" I teased.

"Afraid? Nah." He grinned at me. "I know I will." He reached across the table and laced my fingers with his.

"Thank you." It was all I could think to say.

"I'm a patient man, Bella. I'll wait as long as it takes for you to see that we're good together."

We fell into comfortable conversation about everything and nothing, laughing the whole time. It felt nice to not have to feel like I was walking on eggshells. Alec was fun and it was easy to be around him.

The only time he let go of my hand was when he ate. After dinner he requested the check so I reached down and grabbed my wallet.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, eyeing my wallet.

"Well, this is a wallet and it holds money. I was planning on using said money to pay for dinner since it's my turn."

"Your turn? This was a date, Swan," he scoffed. "Put that thing away before you offend me." I laughed and rolled my eyes but didn't put it away.

"You're offending me and setting the women's movement back fifty years," I joked with a smile.

He just looked at me, pulled out his credit card and put it in the holder.

"Fine, but next time I get to cook you dinner," I offered before I knew the words were coming out of my mouth.

"Oh? A third date at your place?" He winked at me.

"Second date, and yes at my place. Is that a problem?" I asked.

The waitress came back. He signed the slip and we both stood.

He was by my side in a second and guided me out of the restaurant with his arm wrapped around my waist.

"I would have no objection to spending time with you." His voice was low and close to my ear. His warm breath caused me to shiver against him. The moment we walked out the door my paranoia kicked in and I instantly scanned the area for cameras or people who seemed to be lurking about.

"Relax," he whispered.

"Sorry," I sighed. "I can't help being a little jumpy."

"That's another benefit of being with a writer. Everyone automatically assumes we're boring and therefore have nothing of interest to offer to the pop culture public." Despite his words of confidence, I saw him taking a glance around too. "Is this you?" he asked, gesturing toward my BMW.

"It is."

"Good." Before I could say anything, he backed me into the driver's side door and slid his hands around my waist.

"I had a really good time tonight, Bella."

"I did too." I put my arms around his neck and pulled him closer.

"Bella?"

"Hmm?" I couldn't help but stare at the way his lips moved as they were getting closer to mine.

"I'm going to kiss you now." He leaned in closer.

"Ok-" Before I could finish his mouth was on mine. Kissing Alec was like riding a bike. My body instantly reacted. My hands slid from behind his neck and down to his chest and back up again. He tasted like wine and chocolate after-dinner mints.

His hands roamed over my back before his right settled around my waist again and his left went to the base of my neck, pulling me further into the kiss, and making us moan. His leg slid between mine. Hearing the sounds we were making and feeling all of him was enough to remind me that we were in public.

I pulled away as Alec ducked his head again and moved toward me for more.

"Alec, we're still out in the open," I took a deep breath.

"Oh yeah? That could easily be fixed," he murmured against my neck.

"Cars don't count." I lightly tapped his chest for him to move back, which he did.

"I'm sorry." He looked sheepish. "There's something about you that draws me in and it never seems to be enough." He rested his hands on my hips. "Is it okay if I call you over the weekend or do I have to follow the guy 'two day rule'?"

"You're just after my inheritance, aren't you?"

"You know that's all I'm after." We both laughed at the absurdity of our conversation turning from lustful to comical in a matter of seconds.

I opened my mouth to respond, but yawned instead.

"You've had a long day, I'll let you get home," he said, opening the car door for me.

I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his one last time and gave him a tight hug which he quickly reciprocated. "Drive safe."

"You too," I responded. I watched him walk away before getting in and turning the key. I was pulling out when I heard my phone. I stopped and picked it up..

You might have more money, but my car is so much better than yours.

I looked up to see his Mercedes driving past me. He gave a small smirk and a wave, and drove off.

Edward Masen

Motherfucker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay...so what did you think. How do you feel about Alec now? Still hate him or do you like him a tiny bit? What did you think of the apology? Was it heartfelt enough or does he need to grovel more?
> 
> As usual, reviews equal teasers.
> 
> Fic Rec's-
> 
> Art School Confidential by Farkle


	20. It's Just a Picture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I also need to thank my adorable rabid kitten, Irritable_Grizzzly, for cleaning up this chapter and making some good points in certain areas. She has become a fantastic friend and someone I can rely on when I need a electronic shoulder to cry on.
> 
> SM owns all things Twi related, but this story is mine, so don't steal.

Jasper Whitlock

"What the fuck was that?" I hissed at Edward.

"It's him. A is for Alec," he muttered.

"Yes," I said slowly, "and 'E' is for Edward and 'J' is for Jasper." I wasn't quite sure where he was going with this.

"Shut up for a second and I'll explain," he snapped. I shut my mouth and waited.

"A few nights ago, when I was at Bella's, she had an orchid with a note that was signed with the letter A."

"Yeah? So? It was probably Alice. She knows Bella's been going through a rough time," I said calmly."

"It's him, I know it," he insisted. I had to admit that it was possible he wasn't thinking clearly, since he knocked back quite a few tonight. According to the biography on Alec Connors, he was happily married to his wife Megan or Maggie or something, but I wasn't going to push the issue. Maybe after he was sober..

"I have an idea. Why don't we call Alice and see if she and Bella will meet us for dinner somewhere and you'll get some food in you so you don't sound like a complete tool." I patted his back and reached for my phone.

"How much you wanna bet Bella already has dinner plans, with Alec?" he sneered.

"You need to check yourself real quick, son," I warned as the phone rang. When Alice answered, I quickly explained the situation and Alice agreed to meet us and said Bella couldn't come, but didn't give any more information than that. When I asked if she knew where Bella was, she grew silent and told me that she had a date. I was tempted to ask who with, but after hearing the fights between Edward and Alice about Bella's privacy, I quickly learned to stay out if altogether.

I glanced over at Edward and decided to withhold this information for the time being.

Edward Masen

"Hey guys," Alice said as she plopped down in the chair across from me. "Order yet?"

"No. Where's Bella? I thought she was coming too," I said.

"Bella is otherwise occupied," Alice replied mysteriously. She leaned over and gave Jasper a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Where is she, Alice?" I asked a little louder.

"Edward, lower your voice," Jasper warned me for the second time.

"She's not coming, Edward. Calm yourself down. People are already starting to notice you," Alice pointed out.

I looked around and saw she was right. People were staring and camera phones were popping up everywhere.

"Fuck," I muttered, "Let's get out of here and you're going to tell me if she's with Alec Connors." I stood up and left but not before I saw the color drain from Alice's face, telling me everything I needed to know.

After we were all in my Volvo with Alice behind the wheel since I was in no shape to drive, and deciding where to eat. I finally addressed the giant elephant in the backseat.

"Alice, I don't want you to feel pressured to tell me anything. I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable."

"It's fine, Edward," she sighed, "I didn't know about Bella and Alec until this afternoon. She didn't tell me until she felt you would be comfortable with the information. Apparently I have a big mouth."

This was one of the few moments I wished she actually would talk regardless how it would make me feel.

"So she's on a date, big deal." Jasper shrugged. "You guys aren't together. You have absolutely no right to be pissed about it." He was right. I didn't, but that didn't mean I had to like it.

"Edward? May I please say something and if you don't like it you can tell me to stop, okay?"

"Okay."

"I like Alec, he's a good guy. He's always been good to Bella and they have a very strong and unique relationship." My hands tightened. "However, I have never seen her more passionate about anyone as she was with you. Whenever you're mentioned she stops what she's doing for just a moment, as if she has to gather her thoughts again. You have an influence on her that I've never seen before, not with Alec and certainly not with Emmett."

"I appreciate that, but we aren't anything now. She's said she doesn't trust me and we have to work our way toward being friends," I said the last word with an eye roll.

"You have a couple of options here. You can sit back and let Bella and Alec stay together or you can man up and prove yourself. Prove that you're worthy of her trust, her attention, and her affections. She felt something more than friendship for you at one time. I know Bella still feels it even if she won't admit it.

"I wish I knew what to tell you other than to keep doing what you're doing. You wore her down by begging, just keep being persistent and let her know you want to spend time with her." I nodded in acknowledgement. We decided on a little seafood restaurant around the corner from my house.

Upon entering the restaurant we got a few stares but luckily were left alone. We talked about everything that needed to be taken care of before we left for Chicago. Also, Alice had read a couple of the scripts I'd had lying around the house and gave me her input. When she wasn't being a nosy pain in the ass, Alice wasn't half-bad.

Bella Swan

I got home from my date and was surprised to find Alice wasn't home yet. After I had told her my plans she had promised that she would be here waiting. I wrote her absence off and figured she was with Jasper. I had just sat down at my kitchen table-turned-desk to finish some paperwork when Alice called.

"Hey, where are you?" I asked.

"Please don't get mad that I'm not there," she rushed.

"Are you okay?"

"I need your help. I'll explain more later, but I'm with Jasper and Edward and they might have had too much to drink. I can easily get Jasper in the car but Edward is being a bit...oh fuck it, Bella. He's being an obnoxious and a giant pain in my ass. People are taking pictures and I could really use your help."

Before she had finished her rant, my keys were in my hand. I asked where she was and told her that I was on my way.

Ten minutes later I pulled into the parking lot which seemed a little too busy for a weeknight. Sure enough, the second I walked through the door, I spotted the boys in the corner by the bar talking loudly and making wild hand gestures, playing to the large crowd they had garnered. I rolled my eyes and made my way toward them.

I tapped a mortified-looking Alice on the shoulder. The look of relief on her face was priceless.

"Oh look, Bella's here!" Edward yelled. Immediately several dozen heads snapped in my direction. This wasn't going to be good. He stood up and walked around the table and gave me a huge hug.

"I'm here and I think it's time we went home, okay?" I grabbed his arm to pull him but instead he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in close.

"No way. We're having fun, aren't we Jasper?" I saw Alice looking between Edward and Jasper. I caught her eye and nodded toward her boyfriend, hoping she would catch my meaning. Thankfully she did and jumped into his lap and began whispering things in his ear.

"Sorry man, I'm ready to take her home," Jasper announced and stood up with Alice and made their way toward the door.

"I'm going to talk to your server and I'll meet you guys outside, okay?" I promised Edward.

"I'm not letting you go again," he slurred and pulled me in tighter.

"I promise I'll be right back okay?" I patted his chest and pulled away from his grip. He frowned at me in response. I made my way through the crowd and found the manager. I quickly took care of the boys' tab and apologized for their behavior. He assured me it was the busiest night they'd had in a while and was grateful for the appearance.

When I returned to Edward I found myself having to fight off two barflies pawing themselves all over him and taking pictures with their iPhones. I didn't know much about Irina Merriman, but I knew she was going to be furious about this. I didn't envy Edward having to face her wrath tomorrow.

After meeting up with Alice and Jasper in the parking lot, we made our way to Edward's car, fighting off the photographers that had started to show up. Alice and I agreed that she and Jasper would take Edward's car and I would take Edward back in my car. We would figure out how to get Alice's later.

We had been driving for a couple of minutes when Edward finally said something…even though it wasn't all that clear.

"Bella," he began.

"Hmm?"

"I hope I didn't ruin your date with Alec." He sounded less than apologetic.

"It's fine, Edward." I wasn't going to correct him.

"Bella?"

"Yes?"

Instead of answering, he leaned over and sniffed my hair. Then he leaned back in his seat and grabbed my hand and laced his fingers through mine. I didn't bother removing my hand from his. If I was being honest, I liked how it felt to be near him again.

"You're amazing, you know that? You're smart and gorgeous and amazing and you have no idea how bad I want to-"

"Edward, why don't you relax, okay? You might want to stop talking before you say something you're going to regret," I warned.

"Okay, I'll stop talking now." He made the motion of zipping his lips and turning a key. I didn't need to hear what he was going to say. I could take an educated guess. I had just accepted his apology and would feel completely awkward if he had finished his sentence.

We had just turned onto his street when my index finger suddenly felt wet. It took me a moment to realize that Edward had started slowly sucking on my finger. I squeezed my legs together to try and stop the feelings that were building. I tugged my hand away from his mouth and pulled into his driveway.

We entered the house and I heard Alice and Jasper arguing about having sex while he was drunk as we passed by his room. I helped Edward to his room. He collapsed on his bed as I rummaged through his bathroom looking for any kind of pain killer. By the time I found something and had gotten him a bottle of water, he was passed out. I tucked him in, making sure he was comfortable, and left the room.

I went downstairs with the intention of leaving and saw Alice on the couch. "No rodeo tonight?" I laughed at Jasper's previous words and plopped down next to her, throwing my feet on the coffee table.

"Not a chance. He made it as far as taking my shirt off before he ran to the bathroom to throw up." She rolled her eyes and laughed. "Thanks for saving me tonight, I really appreciate it." She leaned over and put her head on my shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, you would have done the same for me," I assured her.

"So how was the date with Alec?" She asked through a yawn.

"It was good. Really good." I had completely forgotten about the earlier part of my night.

"That's nice. You know, you should maybe think about being available for more than just one person."

"Oh, do you have someone in mind?"

"As a matter of fact I do. I've learned tonight that the drunk jackass upstairs isn't a jackass ALL the time. He's actually a pretty decent guy who deserves a chance." She sat up and looked at me

"Jasper?" I asked.

"Don't be stupid. You know I'm talking about Edward. Just...hear me out, okay?"

I sighed and nodded.

"He cares about you, a lot. I know you told him that the two of you had to work on being friends, but maybe after he earns your trust, you could try to see him as more. I believe him when he says that he will do whatever it takes to be with you." She sat back looking a tad smug.

"I thought you guys hated each other?"

"What can I say? I'm now Team Edward," she shrugged.

"Team Edward?" I laughed. I suddenly felt very exhausted. "I think I've had enough excitement for one day. I'm going home." I stood up and stretched. "Are you staying here?"

"Yeah, we can figure out the car thing tomorrow." I nodded in agreement. "Promise me you'll think about what I said?" she asked.

"Yeah, yeah." I waved my hand and stifled a yawn.

"Maybe you should stay here tonight. I know you've got to be tired."

"Where would I sleep?"

"I don't think Edward would mind if you crashed with him," she giggled.

"That's definitely not happening."

"What's not happening?" Edward asked, coming down the stairs. He ran his hand over his like he was trying to wake up.

"Bella sleeping with you," Alice blurted.

"What are you doing up?" I asked him, ignoring Alice.

"I needed more water and heard you two talking." His voice was low and rough. His eyes were bloodshot and he reeked of alcohol. I almost felt bad for him.

"I was just about to head home-"

"And I told Bella that she should sleep here," Alice finished for me.

"C'mon up with me. You can sleep up here. I'll keep my hands to myself." He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the stairs.

"I don't think so." I pulled my hand back. "I'm going home to get some rest and I suggest you guys do the same."

"You don't have to leave. I have a few other rooms you can crash in." Edward begged.

"It's okay, really. How about I call you in the morning to check on you? Maybe we can get together tomorrow, okay?" I said, knowing that he would forget about this in the morning.

"Really?" Edward's face lit up. Over his shoulder I saw Alice's do the same.

"Yeah." I gave him a small smile. He pulled me into his arms and gave me a hug similar to the one from the other night.

He gave me a lingering kiss in my hair and then turned and began climbing the stairs, the water forgotten. "I'll see you tomorrow," he called out over his shoulder.

Alice giggled and shook her head. "You know you just made his week, right?"

I rolled my eyes and suppressed a smile. "He's drunk. He won't remember."

"Wanna bet?" Alice challenged.

"No, I want to go to bed. Call me tomorrow and let me know what's going on." I snatched my keys off the table and left.

Edward Masen

I woke up the next morning and immediately shut my eyes. The birds chirping outside might as well have been loggers with chainsaws. I didn't remember too much from the night before, but I did remember Bella was there and I remembered her promising to see me today.

I showered and dressed before heading downstairs on the off-chance that Bella had decided to stay the night. I saw Alice drinking coffee and scrolling through her Blackberry. She was laughing and shaking her head at whatever she was reading.

"Anything good?" I asked, walking past her to pour myself a cup.

"Oh you have no idea," she answered, not bothering to look at me. "How are you feeling?"

"Like hell. Dry mouth, headache, everything too loud, the usual." I shrugged. "Bella stick around?"

"Nope, she left right after you went back to bed."

"Oh."

"I have a feeling you're going to be hearing from her and Irina today though."

"Why?"

"Here." She thrust her phone at me. I put the mug down and took it.

Oh fuck. The pictures looked bad, really really bad. Well, bad for Alec, but good for me. They showed me holding Bella at my side when we were leaving, pictures of us getting in her car, and the last picture, my personal favorite, was taken from the back of Bella's car. I'm not entirely sure what I was doing but I was leaning over and it looked as if we were kissing. I'd like to think that I would remember doing that, but I couldn't.

"The captions are even better. I wasn't the one who snitched so you might want to find out who leaked that info." She gestured towards her phone. I scrolled down to read the crap that usually followed.

According to the article a "source" close to our camp (I'd always hated that fucking terminology) said that Bella and I were back together and that I was helping Bella through a difficult time in her life and we were very much in love and happy together. The night had started at the bar where Jasper and I had met Alec and then moved on to dinner where Bella joined us later for drinks and was anxious to get me home.

Bella was going to be furious when she saw this.

"Any idea who this source is?" I looked at Alice.

"I do. We've both been in this game long enough to figure it out. Who is the one person most concerned with your image and making you look like a good boy right now?" she asked before taking a sip of coffee.

I thought for a moment before answering, "Irina." Alice nodded in agreement.

"Looks like you have a phone call to make." Alice shrugged and moved to the kitchen.

"Why would I call her?" I had no problem with what was printed.

"You're an asshole, Eddie. Call Irina or I will." Alice came out from the kitchen and glared at me. Her mouth slowly changed to a mischievous smile. "I would hate for our side to release a statement saying, oh I don't know, Bella is actually with Alec Connors and she was merely helping out her boyfriend's newest star as a personal favor to him?"

"You wouldn't." I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Oh, I would." She folded her arms, looking smug.

"Fine," I relented, standing to go upstairs to call Irina.

"Yes!" Alice gave herself a fist pump.

My call to Irina took longer than expected. I spent the first five minutes lecturing her about running things by me before releasing statements to the press and then she proceeded to nag me for at least twenty minutes about not being drunk in public and I should give her an increase in pay. She also told me that it would be in my best interest to take Bella as my date to some stupid award shows coming up, including the MTV Movie Awards.

I insisted that Bella would most likely hate doing stuff like that but promised I would ask anyway. When we hung up I realized that not only did she refuse to apologize and retract the statement, but had given me instructions on how to behave. I had to hand it to her, she was good at her job.

I briefly debated calling Bella but before I could, her number displayed on my screen.

Bella Swan

"Bella..." Jake sang into the phone.

"What?" I rolled over and put my phone on speaker.

"Are you sleeping with Masen?"

"What are you talking about?" I stretched and yawned.

"You mean you aren't in love and going strong?" he prodded, a hint of teasing in his voice.

"Cut the shit, Jake. What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the photos Sam and I are looking at of you and Masen."

"I'll call you back." I shot out of bed and ran to my kitchen to turn on my laptop, stubbing my toe in the process. After the computer had booted up, I quickly went to the sites I knew would have the most gossip, even if it wasn't accurate. I saw the pictures and read what the "inside source" had said. To say I was furious would be an understatement.

I heard my phone ringing back in my bedroom and hobbled back. Alec's name flashed but I ignored the call, not wanting to say anything until I knew what the hell was going on. I called Alice who answered and promised to call me back in a few minutes. I decided to call Edward directly. He answered before the second ring.

"Good morning, Bella. I was just about to call you."

"An inside source? Who the fuck do you have working for you?" I seethed.

"I'm good, how are you this morning?" he said, ignoring me.

"Oh I'm sorry, Edward. Forgive me if I forgot my manners. We're so in love and very much together I thought I would skip past the formalities bullshit."

"I'm sorry about all of this. I already spoke to Irina and she admitted it was her. But I think this could work to our advantage." I heard him sigh at the other end and could imagine him pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Why would I need to look good? I'm not the one who gets drunk and makes an ass out of myself in public! What advantage are you talking about?"

"I may have generated some negative press as of late and since I start filming in Chicago in a few weeks, it may look better for me-us-if we appear together or you can at least pretend that you like me?" He was begging.

"I'm not going to talk about this over the phone," I said. I was interrupted when I saw Alec calling again. "We'll discuss this over lunch. Please ask Alice to set something up for us. I gotta go." Before he could answer I pressed the button to answer Alec's call, a bundle of nerves suddenly forming in my stomach.

"Hello?" I answered, trying to sound casual.

"Bella? Uhm, hi," he sounded nervous.

"Alec, how are you?" At least I was able to remember to be polite to someone.

"I'm okay-no, I'm not going to lie. I'm not okay. I thought we had a good time last night, or at least I did and I thought the feeling was mutual but if it wasn't you would let me know, right? I thought we were good enough friends at least that you would let me know you weren't interested, and I could handle that-" He was rambling.

I stopped him before he could say anything else and spent the next hour explaining what happened. I also told him Edward came over to apologize and had seen the flower. I didn't feel that I owed Alec anything, but I wanted him to know.

'So what about the picture of him kissing you?"

"He didn't kiss me, he was drunk and sniffing my hair." I left out the part where Edward sucked on my fingers, causing a shiver to run down my spine.

"I can't say that I blame him for that. Your hair does smell fantastic."

"You've sniffed me? That's so weird!" I laughed.

"So I shouldn't show you the hair doll I've made," he deadpanned.

"That's disgusting and oddly romantic," I teased.

"So," he cleared his throat, "do I have anything to be worried about? I know we've only had one date and a little competition is healthy..." his voice trailed off.

"Edward and I are friends, Alec. I don't want you to think I'm hiding something from you, so I'll tell you now that we're are having lunch to clear this whole thing up." As soon as I said the word friends, I felt deceitful. Friends is all I could ever allow, but a voice that nagged at me last night was starting again.

"I get it, Bella. We'll all be in Chicago together. You might as well get along, right?"

"Right," I agreed, ignoring the feelings that were steadily getting stronger that something big was going to happen in Chicago.

"I need to get going, but may I call you later?"

"You may call me anytime," I instantly cringed at how cheesy I sounded. Now I was quoting Blondie.

"Hey Bella?"

"Yeah?"

"I would have called you this morning even if I hadn't seen the pictures. I wanted to let you know I really did have a great time last night and I was thinking of you."

"I had a really good time too." We exchanged brief good-byes after I declined an offer for him to help me wash my back in the shower.

I got dressed and ignored all calls except for the ones from Alice and Billy. Billy had found several candidates for Charlie's position and we arranged for me to fly out next month to help him go over the final interviews. Alice had set up a quiet place in the Hills for Edward and me to meet up after I shot down her idea to meet at either of our houses. I also let her know about going to New York.

The thought of filling Charlie's position gave me pause. It was just another reminder that he was really gone. None of the potentials that Billy had found could ever be Charlie. The guilt that washed over me at the idea that I was somehow replacing my father put me in a sorrowful mood for the rest of the morning.

Edward Masen

"Okay, Champ. You're meeting Bella for lunch in a couple of hours. Make it good. I don't like what Irina has done but I can see why she's doing it. One word from Bella and God help you, no amount of spin from that bitch will save your ass from the wrath I will unleash upon you," Alice warned, her tone was ice cold. Then she brightened. "Have fun!"

I sat in the back of the cafe, nervously twisting the napkin to shreds. I had no idea what I was in for, but I was happy that we were at least going to have a real conversation. I had so many things running through my head about what I wanted to say but I didn't want anything to sound rehearsed.

I heard some kind of uproar outside and I tensed, afraid that I had been followed. Before I could worry too much, a calm feeling took over me and I instantly knew that Bella was near.

"Hey, sorry I'm late," Bella said breathlessly as she slid into the booth across from me. "It's a fucking madhouse out there." She took off her hat and sunglasses and set them on the table.

"What?" My head instantly whipped around, and sure enough there were people swarming all over the place.

"I think they're filming The Hills across the street." She rolled her eyes and grinned. "We get trumped by reality stars," she laughed, "it's nice."

The waitress came over and took our orders quickly and quietly, barely looking at the two of us. After she left the table, Bella and I sat across from each other in awkward silence.

"So...thanks for saving my ass last night, I really appreciate it."

"Eh, don't worry about it. We're in love. It's what we do right?" .

"So you're not mad?" I asked cautiously.

"I was at first," she sighed, "but in the grand scheme of things, I've had to deal with a lot worse than this from the media. Everything was chaos when Emmett and I split and it was even worse when Charlie died. I think it was just the shock if it more than anything, you know? People will move on to the next shiny flashy piece of gossip soon enough. They're like raccoons that way. I can't wait for the next RPattz movie to come out. It'll be like a vacation."

"Yeah, great," I muttered, thinking of some stupid publicity stunt Irina would undoubtedly try and get me to agree to. Then an idea dawned on me. I could just fire her and hire Alice instead.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Bella nudged her foot with mine under the table.

"Nothing, I just got distracted."

"Okay." She gave me a skeptical look but didn't push. "So what do we do now? About the pictures?" she changed the subject.

"What do you want to do?" I wasn't about to admit that I was happy with the perception of us together if it meant that we had to play along.

"I don't really care. I say let it play out. We just keep doing what we want and if we get our pictures taken, big deal. Grand scheme, remember?"

"What about if we start seeing other people? Alec isn't going to care?" I prodded. She froze at the mention of Alec.

"Alec knows I'm here." She shrugged and looked incredibly grateful to see our food arrive.

"Right. So how are things with Alec?" I asked my food.

"Edward..." her voice trailed off.

"What? Friends can't ask about each other's love lives?"

"We aren't that kind of 'friends.'"

"What kind of friends are we then?"

"We are the kind of friends who save each other from making mistakes and we do each other favors, but we aren't the type who discuss that."

I instantly saw my way in. "Well in that case I have a favor to ask you."

"You're going to have to stop talking to your french fries and look at me first." I looked up to see her eyeing me warily but she was wearing a small smile.

"I need a date to the MTV Movie Awards in July. Apparently I'm not allowed to take my sister anymore."

"You want me to set you up with someone? I'm sure Jake would love to go with you."

"Bella," I sighed, rolling my eyes, "I want you to come with me and make this god-awful thing bearable. It's bad enough I'm slated to present at the fucking Teen Choice Awards. At least with MTV I could have sex in a limo and be hailed a hero ten minutes later on the red carpet.

"You want to have sex in a limo?" She teased.

"Are you offering?"

She choked on her drink.

"Uhm, I don't know, Edward."

I didn't know if she was unsure of being my date or having sex. Either way it was a win-win scenario.

"It would be good press for the movie." I could see her thoughts processing until she finally relaxed her shoulders and nodded.

"Fine, I'll go, but I have conditions."

"Which are?"

"One is we don't pretend to be a couple, we're just Edward and Bella. Two, you are buying all my drinks. Three-"

"How many conditions are there?" I interrupted her.

"How badly do you want me?" Before I could come up with a smart-ass answer, she clarified, "to go with you?"

She took my silence as permission to continue. "Three, we leave when I say the word and four, we don't go to any after-parties."

"Done."

"Just like that?"

"We're friends if anyone asks. The drinks are free, I usually leave after I've done my duty and I hate after-parties," I pointed out.

We ate in silence for a few minutes, Bella keeping busy with her Blackberry.

"Am I keeping you from something?" I tried to keep the irritation out of my voice.

"Sorry, it's Billy." She held up her phone and waved it around but kept her head down.

"Bella, put your phone down for two seconds and look at me." She instantly did what I asked and stared at me, eyes wide with surprise at my firm tone.

"How are you?"

"I'm fine." She looked frustrated and moved to pick up her Blackberry again.

"No. I'm asking because I care. I'll ask you again, how are you?"

Suddenly her eyes welled up with tears. She crossed her arms and looked at the ceiling as if she was trying to keep from crying.

"I need to get out of here," she sniffed. I instantly asked for the bill, paid it, and we made our way out. We lucked out that the crowd gathered across the street had gone, and we were able to slip away unnoticed. After making sure she was in good enough shape to drive, we agreed to meet back at her house.

After we got to Bella's house, I confiscated her phone and ordered her to relax on the couch. I fixed her a cup of tea, ignoring the large white orchid taunting me from its vase on the counter.

I went back to join Bella and the sight before me damn near broke my heart. She was curled up in a ball sniffling and wiping her nose with the back of her hand.

"I don't know why I'm still crying, I know he's gone and I'm sad about it, but I don't get why I can't stop."

"Bella, Charlie died less than a month ago, and you were close. There would be something wrong with you if you weren't upset about it," I said softly. I pulled her into my arms and rubbed her back until her breathing evened out and I knew she was asleep.

I carried her to her bed and tucked her in, then leaned down to give her a light kiss on the cheek when she grabbed my hand and looked at me with a pleading expression.

"Edward," she whispered.

"Yeah?"

"Stay with me. Please?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fic rec's:
> 
> Tips For Better Living-AdorableCullens. This story is just...(wait for it)...amazing.
> 
> What Happens at Charlie's Wedding-Velvetbutterfly. I will tell you now it's a C/B...but it's hot.


	21. It's Just a Few Days Later

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN:
> 
> As of right now everyone in my family is sick, hopefully taking a turn for the better soon. Please see the bottom for an announcement.
> 
> Thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly for taking time out of her wicked busy schedule to read my shit and tell me how to make it better!
> 
> As usual, SM owns Twilight, I just write stories and occasionally make fun of it.

"Oh my God," Jasper snickered.

I rolled my eyes and kept loading the dishwasher, trying to ignore his laughs and comments. He had been sitting behind his laptop at the kitchen table doing this for almost twenty minutes but refusing to tell Alice or me what he was looking at. When we did ask, he would shake his head and say he would tell us later.

I heard the dryer signal that it was done. Without a second thought I made my way the laundry room and started pulling out the contents. I closed my eyes and willed myself not to look at whatever it was that was lace and silk and small.

Why the hell didn't she have a housekeeper or someone to do this for her?

I asked myself that question multiple times a day for the past three days. Ever since she'd asked me to stay. It hadn't taken a minute for me to agree and lay next to her in bed, on top of the covers. The next morning I woke up before she did and made my way down to her kitchen, surprised to find Alice making a pot of coffee. Needless to say, she was surprised to find me there as well. I gave her a brief summary of what had happened and why I was there.

There was no way in hell I was leaving her side now. She was stuck with me whether she knew it or not. Hell, whether she liked it or not. Occasionally she would take a shower or change her pajamas, but she mostly stayed in her room, sleeping or at least in bed. Sometimes I would hear her cry softly and she would let me hold her, and at other times Alice would comfort her.

Alice had turned out to be less annoying than I expected. We still had arguments about her intrusive behavior, but we learned to work around it. We made several arrangements that allowed us to work closely together and it turned out if we could put our personal differences aside, we made a pretty good team.

We were now on the evening of the third day and I had all but moved into her house. Alice would cook - or whatever she called it - that involved almost burning down the kitchen. We were reduced to Jasper making breakfast and getting take-out for lunch and dinner. The three of us had moved from my place to hers and it was amazing how comfortable I felt so quickly.

I lugged the laundry basked to the family room and was about to start sorting it when Alice's laughter from the kitchen caught my attention. Apparently Jasper had let her in on the joke. I chose to ignore it until I heard Alice say, "Holy shit, Edward's gonna die."

"And what am I going to die from?" I said from the entryway of the kitchen.

"Remember a few years ago when you did those teen vamp movies?" Jasper asked.

"Yeah." I rolled my eyes. I could only regret doing those movies so much; they had launched my career, but I had to fight like hell to prove myself as a serious actor afterward. It took years.

"And remember when the fans started writing their own version of the movies?" he prodded.

"Vaguely," I said slowly. It was true. The movies I had done were based on a series of books. When the movies became popular, some fans had taken to writing their own stories with alternate endings and other scenarios. I had no idea it was even happening until it was brought up in an interview where I lied and said I did read them and how talented some of the writers were.

"Apparently they aren't just writing about your character anymore," Alice chimed in. She stood over Jasper's shoulder staring at the computer screen.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I moved over to the kitchen table and snatched his laptop away. It took me a moment to scroll to the top of the page and see what he was reading.

Holy shit. People were writing stories about me. And Bella.

"Go back a page and read the last couple of paragraphs," Alice suggested. "I think you'd enjoy what Bella's orbs look like while she's...you know," she cleared her throat and giggled.

"I can't read this. How the fuck do you find this shit, Jasper?" I handed him back his laptop.

"I Googled you." He shrugged at my surprised face. "It's part of my job to know what people are saying about you. Haven't you ever Googled yourself?"

"No," I lied. "I don't have time for that bullshit." I left the two idiots in the kitchen and returned to where I had left the laundry basket. I sat down and slipped into a rhythm, not paying attention to what I was folding or who was in the room with me.

I heard a throat clear behind me, and then "Edward? Why are you playing with my underwear?"

"Huh?" I spun around to see an amused Bella standing a few feet away. I looked down and saw a pair of white lace panties in my hand. I quickly dropped them in the basket in front of me.

"Why are you folding my clothes?"

I rambled to try and explain why I was doing her laundry. By the time I was done I noticed that Alice and Jasper had entered the room, making Bella smile wider, and I got flustered for no apparent reason. She made her way over to me and pulled me into a tight hug.

"Thank you," she whispered in my ear and gave me a lingering kiss on the corner of my mouth. It was in that moment, in the way she looked at me, that I could feel a shift in the way things were going to be.

"No problem, it's what friends do, right?" She nodded, pulling back and heading toward the kitchen.

"How long have I been...out of it?" She looked around the house, as if she was inspecting that everything hadn't gone to hell while she wasn't around.

"Three days," I said with hesitancy, not sure how she would take it.

"Three days? Alice!" She looked at her friend with wide eyes

"What?"

"You've let me sleep for three days? What about work? I had calls I needed to return, I had plans with Al-" She stopped her rant, running her fingers through her hair and paced back and forth.

"Bella, calm down." Alice placed her hands on Bella's shoulders to get her to stop moving. She finally stopped her pacing and sat on the edge of the coffee table.

Alice explained to her that she'd taken all the necessary measures to clear her schedule and that everything had been taken care of, all while Bella stared at the carpet, nodding occasionally. When Alice finished talking, Bella looked up and she seemed like she was about to cry.

"Do you have any questions?" Alice asked gently.

"Just one." She looked up at me and quirked an eyebrow. "I still don't know why you were touching my panties."

In the moment I did what any second grader would do when in trouble and pointed at Alice and said, "She made me do it."

Bella chuckled and shook her head. "I really appreciate everything you guys have done. I'm gonna go hop in the shower and get dressed. Let me take you all out to dinner, it's the least I can do." She stood quickly and made her way to her bedroom without waiting for an answer.

After she was out of earshot, Jasper came up, patted my shoulder and announced that he and Alice were going to leave to spend some time alone. He said Bella was all mine and wished me luck and to enjoy her orbs. Alice sprinted upstairs to presumably tell her that she was leaving. Since I couldn't hear their conversation, I could only assume that everything was okay because Alice came bounding down the stairs, gave me a quick hug, and was out the door.

I stood there speechless, watching my best friend and his girlfriend pull out of the driveway. I was genuinely nervous and excited at the same time. It seemed as though there were a million things I wanted to talk to her about, but mostly there were only a few minor things I could think of. The anxiousness that I was feeling was clouding my thoughts.

I heard the shower turn off and Bella's footsteps above me, moving from room to room. I'll admit that I didn't put much effort into not thinking about the fact that Bella was upstairs, wrapped in a towel with wet hair-fuck! No! I did need to stop those thoughts. Instead I focused on making sure all her clothes were put back in the laundry basket and the basket was tucked away.

I couldn't think of anything else to do to stay busy so I went into the kitchen to clean. but Alice had already taken care of that. I moved back to the family room and sat on the couch, trying to talk myself into calming down. I was having an adrenaline surge, but I still wasn't sure why. Three days ago we were on good terms, I think? Maybe she was just being polite by asking me to stay and I wasn't supposed to? But she did seem genuinely happy I was around.

I was brought out of my thoughts when I heard her calling my name.

Bella Swan

My heart pulled for him a little as I watched him fidget on the couch. I was afraid he was going to need hair plugs by the time he was thirty if he kept doing that.

"Edward?"

No response.

"Edward?" I asked again a little louder. He turned around and stood up. I felt his eyes assess my appearance and I suddenly felt self-conscious about what I was wearing.

I shook off the feeling and slowly approached him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Where are we going?"

I quickly found my keys but remembered something. "Do you want to drive? You know, portray the whole couple image thing?" I offered.

"Actually, I need to talk to you about that." He looked at his shoes.

"Okay…" I let my voice trail off.

"Could we talk about it over dinner? You drive." He looked at me and offered a small smile. I wordlessly led him to the garage. My stomach was in knots. For the first time I was nervous about being around Edward. He had more than stepped up to the plate for me in the past few days and the feelings I felt for him before he left were starting to resurface. This time they were stronger than before and while I was excited, it scared the hell out of me at the same time. I realized that maybe we could be more than friends and that if he continued to prove he was trustworthy, then things could work out for us.

I wasn't sure what was happening to me anymore. I always liked to think I had things under control. That I would always be able to make sure the outcome of any situation would turn out in my favor. It's why I was so good at my job. But these feelings of being confused and giddy and happy were throwing me for a very unexpected loop.

"Bella?" Edward asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"Could we go now?"

"What?"

"We've been sitting in your driveway for four minutes."while you stare off into space."

"Oh, yeah. Okay." I threw the car in reverse and headed toward one of my favorite places. The car ride was spent making small talk and Edward apologizing for touching my panties.

When we arrived at the restaurant Edward looked out the window and back at me with a skeptical eyebrow. "Gloria's Taco's?"

"You said you didn't care where we went and I want fish tacos and these are the best." I shrugged and got out of the car. We walked in and I was thankful that the place was empty. We placed our orders and ignored the whispers of the staff as they milled around, pretending to look busy.

"So what was it that you wanted to talk about?"

"The whole pretend relationship thing; you don't have to worry about it." He avoided looking at me, just as he'd done at my house.

"So what's the new game plan?" I asked, taking a sip of my drink.

"There isn't one."

"I'm confused. What's Irina got up her sleeve?"

"I have no idea but I'm sure what she wants to do isn't very appealing." He was being cryptic and it was starting to piss me off.

"Okay." I slapped my palm on the table, his eyes shot to mine at the sound echoing through the restaurant. "Spell it out for me, apparently something has happened in the past few days, and since I wasn't entirely conscious for it, you're going to have to fill me in. I'm not a damn mind reader." I took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Jesus, calm down. What I'm trying to tell you is that I fired Irina and hired Alice." He began playing with his napkin and started tearing it to shreds.

"Wow, a lot happened in the three days I was out. So I guess you guys patched up your differences enough for you to hire her?" He nodded sheepishly. "That's great, I think you'll be happy with her." I meant it. Alice was not well known in the PR business but she was damn good at what she did. She was the only one I trusted after fired all the assholes Renee hired. She was my best friend and would always have my best interest at heart.

"You're not mad?" He looked surprised.

"Nah."

Cue the awkward silence.

Edward Masen

Just do it, idiot. Ask her!

I wanted to ask her, so badly. I didn't want to press her, but how do you subtly tell someone that you're worthy of more than friendship so they should now let down their guard and agree to more?

I cleared my throat and asked, "So what are your plans for the rest of the week?"

"I have no idea. I would have to ask Alice."

"Have dinner with me Friday?" I blurted. Her eyes grew a bit wider, so I added, "please?"

"I don't know…" her voice trailed off.

"You still don't trust me." It wasn't a question.

"It's not that...it's just...what if things go well?" She was looking at anything but me.

"Isn't that the idea? To maybe see where things can go?" I prodded. "Look, I don't expect anything. I want to spend time with you, but I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want. I'm a patient person but don't expect that when you finally come around I'll still be waiting for you." I couldn't stop the words as they were coming out. Could diarrhea of the mouth be considered a medical condition?

"Is that what you think? That I'm playing around with you?" Her voice was a little louder than it should have been. I glanced over to see the majority of the staff was listening.

"I'm not going to discuss this with you anymore, at least not here. Just let me know what you decide." At that moment our food arrived. We ate in silcens for a few minutes.

Finally Bella said, "Okay." Her voice was so low I barely heard her.

"What?"

"I said, 'okay,' as in I'll have dinner with you," she clarified.

"Okay."

I didn't push or offer to discuss details. I figured we would talk about what we were going to do when the time came; she was fragile enough as it was. We talked a bit about Chicago and her upcoming trip to New York.

After the bill was paid and we left, I was surprised to see the parking lot was empty. The staff at Gloria's Tacos had more class than the ones at the Ivy. For a few moments I took in the feeling of what it would be like if we didn't live our lives in the public, or rather the public didn't have their weird fascination with Bella and I was still an unknown. It was nice.

We drove back to her house in silence. She seemed lost in thought and I wasn't about to push her. If I'd learned anything, it was that she needed to move at her own pace and come to conclusions all on her own.

We pulled into the garage and she turned off the car, then leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes. "So if you wanna come in and watch a movie, we could do that, but you've been babysitting me for a few days and I'm sure you're anxious to get home," she sighed. "Ignore me, you should go home and get some rest."

"Is that what you want?" I asked gently. I took a chance and took her hand and laced our fingers together.

"No."

"Okay then." I kissed her knuckles and released her hand, got out of the car, and waited for her to join me before I just walked into her house like I owned the place.

We settled on the couch, ignoring the pile of laundry and stared at the previews as they played across the screen.

"Why did you stay?" she suddenly asked.

"What?"

"Why did you stay," she repeated in a slower speed.

. I turned to her and grabbed her hands. "You needed me. You were upset and finally breaking down your defenses. All of them, Bella and not just the ones I created. The last thing I wanted to do was give you a reason to put them back up. I wanted to prove that I could be better for you and this was my chance.

Was it a bit selfish? Absolutely, but I would do it again in a second because it has me here, with you, alone, and I think we both know that we're more than just friends. It should be pretty obvious by now that I would do just about anything for you." I avoided looking at her, instead played with the ring on her index finger, waiting for her to speak.

"Edward?"

"Yeah?" I could feel the couch cushions shift around me.

"Would you please look at me?" I raised my eyes to meet hers, surprised to find her face closer to mine than I expected. "Thank you," she whispered and before I knew what was happening, her mouth was on mine. It took me a moment to realize that I wasn't kissing her back. So I did.

All the fantasies and memories I had of what it felt like to kiss her paled in comparison to the real thing. She moaned and ran her nails up and down my back, making me shiver. I kept my hands on her thighs, squeezing occasionally to keep myself from groping her. I was going to let her take the lead on this and I sure as fuck wasn't going to push her further than she wanted. I leaned forward to gain a better sense of balance when she angled her body backwards.

I was lying on top of her now, and my hands had moved to one being in her hair and the other going anywhere she'd let me. It was currently cupping her ass since her leg was hitched around my hip.

She moved her mouth away from mine and started nipping at my neck, biting a little harder as she got closer to my ear. When she bit me right under my ear, my hips reflexively thrust into hers and I swore I heard her say "Yes!. To test her again, I moved into her again and was met with an enthusiastic response.

I reached to the bottom of her shirt and snaked my hand underneath when she stopped me.

"Bedroom," she breathed heavily.

I paused. The moment I'd been wanting so long for and I froze. The timing wasn't right.

"We don't have to do anything you don't want to," she assured me. I looked at her with wide eyes. Wasn't that the line most guys used?

"It's not that." I shook my head.

"What is it then?" She was wearing a look mixed of nervousness and lust.

"I just...I really want you to trust me. You've got too much on your plate and I won't be a distraction while you work everything out." I hoped that she understood what I was saying.

"What if I want a distraction?" she prodded

"What if I want more?" I shot back. Now I was pissed. I had thought I'd proven myself to be enough, but would I ever really be? "If you want a distraction, call Alec or someone else. I'm better than that and I'd hoped you would have at least noticed some of that by now." I straightened my clothes and went to search for me keys.

I found them in the kitchen and took a deep breath to compose myself. I came back into the family room and saw her curled on the couch, her shoulders shaking, her arms muffling her sobs. I'm such an asshole.

"Bella, come here," I said quietly. I stood in front of her and pulled her into my arms.

"I always fuck it up, don't I?" she cried into my chest.

"Not always." I kissed the top of her head. "You always tell me to think about what it is that I want, but it goes both ways. You know that I want you and I don't just mean for sex, right?" She nodded. "Good. You want me for more than that too, right?" She nodded again. "Now, we established we are both going to be incredibly busy for the next six weeks. Why don't you work on you and I work on me and in six weeks, when I'm done with my location shoot and you're done in New York, we revisit this, okay?"

"Six weeks?" She pulled back and looked...insulted.

"It doesn't have to be, but it sounds like a good amount of time. We'll see each other a lot, I promise. Just no more of this." I motioned toward the couch.

"Not even a little?" She eyed me as she ran her fingertips up and down my chest almost making me lose my resolve.

"Why don't we go day-by-day on that, okay? Maybe work toward it?"

"I can do that," she agreed.

"Good. On that note, I think I'm going to leave and uhm…" my voice faded as I subtly shifted to try and readjust myself, causing Bella to giggle.

She led me to the front door and I gave her a few innocent kisses before I left. I was halfway home when I replayed what had just happened and our agreement to take it slow. One thing I needed to talk to Bella about was Alec. I couldn't get rid of him unless I wanted to be fired and that sure as shit wouldn't work. I inhaled sharply and slowly exhaled. Bella was a big girl, and she could deal with him on her own. I would have to trust her.

Bella Swan

After he left, I stood in my family room taking in the silence. Everyone had let me be for the past few days, but now the silence was deafening. I didn't want to bother Alice, and I obviously couldn't call Edward. Jake would be busy with Sam and I didn't even want to think about Emmett. That left one person and on the one hand it felt completely inappropriate to call him, but on the other I felt comfortable calling Alec. He was my friend above all else, but at this time of night, I would be afraid he'd get the wrong impression.

I picked up the pieces of trash around the bottom floor of the house. What everyone had done for me had been amazing and I would be eternally grateful for their efforts. When Edward told me his reasons for why he stayed, he blew me away. I expected him to say that it was because I had asked and leave it at that. I learned a valuable lesson: Don't judge.. He did admit that he was being selfish, but if I had been put in a similar situation I would have done the same thing. I would have even done his laundry.

I noticed the white panties sitting on top of the pile and smiled. I carried the basket to my room, but didn't put away any of the clothes. In a way, it was as if some part of him was still around me. I wished he hadn't left when he did, but I understood why.. That act really showed me he was serious about wanting to be a better person. That he wanted a real relationship. I know how hard it must have been for him to stop.

Edward Masen was quickly becoming a permanent fixture in my life and now that I had him, I wasn't going to let him go.

I changed out of my clothes and into a pair of clean pajamas. After switching out the dirty sheets for the clean ones Edward had folded, I slid into bed with a book. I couldn't focus on the words on the page and decided to give up. I could only muse to myself how quickly things had changed in less than a week.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, epic AN:
> 
> First, what did you think? I know I've essentially cockblocked these two from the get-go, SO to make it up to you, instead of a teaser for chapter 22, I have something better. It's an alternate to the ending of chapter 2. It's a full out nice lemon for you. So review and that's what you get!
> 
> Mad props to nerac, stephk0525, and kisvakondok for pre-reading the lemon I'm sending out. If anyone knows how to write smut, it's those three.
> 
> There have been so many amazing stories I've found the past couple weeks.
> 
> Fic Recs:
> 
> Cullen, Unscripted- FL95
> 
> The Unaccompanied Soul - JMCullen09


	22. It's Just the First Few Weeks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ch 22
> 
> It's Just the First Few Weeks
> 
> AN: Thank you all so much for being so incredibly patient while I got this done. This chapter has been done for a while but had to undergo several revisions before I was happy with it.
> 
> Mad props to Irritable_Grizzzly, my incredible, edible beta whom I love no matter we stomp our feet and argue over silly things like free hands or the Oxford comma.
> 
> Also, to aylah50, author of The Ride who has become a good friend to me, and I truly value her input over the past few weeks.
> 
> Please read the announcement at the bottom.

Ch 22

It's Just the First Few Weeks

AN: Thank you all so much for being so incredibly patient while I got this done. This chapter has been done for a while but had to undergo several revisions before I was happy with it.

Mad props to Irritable_Grizzzly, my incredible, edible beta whom I love no matter we stomp our feet and argue over silly things like free hands or the Oxford comma.

Also, to aylah50, author of The Ride who has become a good friend to me, and I truly value her input over the past few weeks.

Please read the announcement at the bottom.

Week One

Edward Masen

Six weeks?

It sounded like a good idea at the time, but now sitting at a red light a few blocks from my house with a raging case of blue balls, six weeks seemed like the stupidest fucking idea I'd ever had.

Never in my life had I cock-blocked myself, so why start now? Because I'm a goddamn masochist, that's why. I sighed and shook my head, concentrating on the real reasons. It would give us the time to properly get to know each other and work through whatever issues we still had. It would be hard, pun intended, to be near Bella and yet not be physical. Her going to New York in the middle of shooting would most likely be a welcome break from any future sexual tension.

I had a nagging feeling in the back of my mind, that something still wasn't right. If I was only interested in Bella, and she had expressed the same for me, what would happen with Alec?

Bella Swan

Six weeks? In some way I felt like Edward was testing me. If not, what were the odds it was a sick joke? I could do it. I wanted to do it. It would be the more productive and normal way to get to know someone, given our circumstances. I thought about calling Alice but changed my mind since she and Jasper were getting some alone-time together after taking care of me for the past few days.

If there was ever a time to need a gay best friend, it was now. I quickly found Jake's number and dialed.

"Hey, Bella. Are you okay? Alice said you went a little catatonic on us," he answered.

Nice greeting.

"I'm fine. Listen, I know it's been a while but how about coming over? I could really use someone to talk to."

The silence was long enough that I looked at the phone to make sure our call was still connected.

"Jake?"

I heard a low moan in the background. Oh God. I quickly hung up and stared at my phone, somewhat mortified and afraid it would bite me.

I wasn't one for girlfriends because the majority of my female acquaintances were in New York, and even if that wasn't a factor, the part about them being catty bitches was, apart from Alice. Obviously I needed some new female friends. I could call Alice but I wanted to give her a reprieve from me and let her spend time with Jasper. I retreated to my room and changed into lounging clothes and thought about how the evening went and what my plans would be for the next two months.

To say I'd be busy was an understatement; six weeks might not be a bad idea after all. If I was in a relationship, I wouldn't really have the time to put any any effort into it. The process of getting to know someone was hard enough, but to throw in the obstacles of distance, work schedules, and other people (okay, just me, I think), made everything even more difficult. I would have to tell Alec at some point that I was no longer interested in a romantic relationship, but something was holding me back.

We had a great connection on many levels. In the past we'd crossed the line from friends to lovers and back, but could we do it again?

I called Alec and asked him to come to my place for a home-cooked meal like we had planned. I would tell him about Edward, because even though things weren't serious between us, he deserved to know. After everything I had been through with Emmett, the last thing I wanted was to make someone else feel like I once did.

After I hung up the phone, I stretched out on the couch and took a deep breath. I could automatically smell Edward's cologne and was inundated with flashbacks from just an hour earlier. How his body felt against mine, his breath on my neck and I instantly was covered in goose-bumps. My mind wandered back to New York, remembering his hands on me, and I let out an involuntary shiver. I instantly bolted to my bathroom and jumped in the shower. I was able reach my release. Several times.

After my shower, I pulled on a loose pair of shorts and an old college t-shirt I'd stolen from Emmett years ago and crawled into bed. I passed out in a matter of minutes.

The next morning passed in a blur of phone calls and rushing around trying to get ready. I was leaving for Chicago in a few days and almost nothing was done. Luckily Alice had been thoughtful enough to pack a suitcase full of toiletries, leaving the clothing options up to me. She had also prepared all the documents that I might need while in New York, and issued press releases for the movie on my behalf.

Usually it wouldn't be necessary for me to be on-set, but, ever since it was announced that Edward was attached to the project and word had spread that people from the studio were scouting final locations, fan-sites were popping up with the details of the shooting itinerary, and a script had been leaked.

In a sense, if something could go wrong, it did. If this were any other project Tyler could have handled it, but because this was one of our biggest projects to date, and my first as head of the company, there was a lot of pressure on me to perform. My mini-meltdown set us back quite a bit, but it wasn't anything that couldn't be taken care of eventually.

Sometimes I'd think of something and I found myself scanning my Blackberry for Charlie's phone number, and would stop when the realization hit me, but I'd just choke back a sob and carry on with my day. Eventually I learned to just ask myself what Charlie would do and felt a sense of pride that I could do this and succeed.

It was almost two in the afternoon before my stomach started growling. I hadn't eaten anything for hours. Massive amounts of coffee had been sustaining me until now. I still needed to get things ready for Alec and try to figure out what I was going to say to him.

I quickly headed to the store to get the makings for something quick, yet easy. Since I grew up with chefs making all my meals, I was never afforded the opportunity to learn how to cook until I moved to college. Even then, what I could do was measly and barely above edible. Cooking was fun, but I found that the mess usually wasn't worth it.

I was able to make it to the store and get my shopping done with enough time to stop at the liquor store on the way back and pick up a couple of bottles of wine. Alec was a laid-back, easy-going guy and the idea of not seeing him as much or at all made me sad. He had put himself out there for the first time and I felt some pressure and a bit of guilt that I was letting him down.

After cleaning the house and getting the vegetables prepped for a salad, I took a small break with a large glass of wine. Half of it was gone when Alec rang my doorbell. He handed me a small bouquet of tulips and the guilt hit me again. This was going to be harder than I thought and not just because of the flowers. I'd almost forgotten how handsome he was, even in a simple pair of jeans and white button-down.

Instead of walking past me, he stopped in front of me. Before I realized what was happening, he wrapped his arms around my waist and gave me a long, slow deep kiss. I felt guilty for kissing him back, but told myself this was more like a goodbye kiss, even if he didn't know it. Then he pulled back and murmured, "I've missed you." The guilt hit me hard and it took all I had not to cringe. I wasn't entirely sure if it was the guilt of having to let him down or because in my heart I felt like I was betraying Edward.

I gave him a small smile and told him the same, because it was true. I had missed him and his company. I couldn't discount that we had a connection, no matter how hard I tried. It was just that the connection with Edward was stronger. Alec and I got along because we had a lot of common interests and had known each other for a while, so we knew a lot of the same people.

Edward challenged me. He could soothe me. Yes, Alec would have comforted me during my three-day catatonia, but he would never have pushed for the truth in the first place.

We moved to the kitchen where I grabbed a vase for the flowers and began boiling the pasta. We made small-talk while dinner was being prepared. He told me about the ideas he had for a new book series, only occasionally letting me get a word in, which was fine. I poured the sauce in a pot and turned on the heat. I was too wrapped up in my own head to really pay attention to what he was saying.

"Bella?" Alec said.

"Hmmm?" I swirled the wine in my glass, staring at the light reflecting off of it.

"I asked if there was anything I could do to help," he chuckled. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good." I gave him a small smile, pointed to where the plates were, and asked him to set the table for me. I guess I'd been really out of it because when I went to stir the sauce, it boiled over and splattered all over me. At first I freaked out and then I realized I was being ridiculous.

Sauce covered the stovetop as well as my shirt and my hair. Alec was laughing hysterically.

"I don't mean to laugh," he snorted. I raised my eyebrow in response. "Okay, I did, but that was like something out of a cartoon," he joked and moved toward me, grabbing a rag off the countertop. He slowly wiped the sauce off my shirt and moved in closer for a kiss.

I immediately shot my hand out to stop him. He gave me a confused look. "I don't want to get your shirt dirty," I explained. "I should change."

"While you change, how about I order something? Chinese okay?" He called out as I climbed the stairs. I agreed and went to change my shirt, and then took a moment to pull my shit together.

I came back to the kitchen just as Alec was done ordering. "I got your usual, is that okay?"

"Great." I looked around and saw that he had straightened up the kitchen somewhat.

We took our glasses into the sitting room and sat comfortably on opposite ends of the couch. We talked about Chicago and the shooting schedule. He brought up his concerns about how much had been leaked and things that were my job to cover. I could understand his concerns, but his apprehension about me being able to do my job irked me a lot. I did my best to assure him that I had it under control, which I did.

Maybe he realized he was treading on thin ice because he changed the subject and asked about Jake, which reminded me of the embarrassing phone call. I chuckled when I thought about how awkward it would be next time I saw him and Sam. I told Alec about it and he laughed. Then we reminisced about the times that Alec and Maggie would join Emmett and me on our drunken excursions around Chinatown.

"You remember the time Emmett ate all the eggrolls?" I giggled. I had been working on my third glass of wine in two hours and I had a nice buzz going. Alec was about to say something when we were cut off by a knock at the front door.

"Here." Alec said, handing me some money.

"Please," I scoffed. "I make more than you do remember? Besides I ruined dinner, it's only fair." I grabbed my wallet and went to the front door. When I opened it, a delivery person wasn't standing there.

"Edward, hey."

"Hey."

"What are you doing here?" I blurted.

"I was thinking that I had a few days before I left and I wanted to see you."

"Oh, right now isn't really a good time," I lowered my voice.

"You know I'll never understand Emmett's infatuation with fried foods," Alec's voice came from the family room. Edward's eyes widened when he saw Alec.

"Masen? What are you doing here?" He slipped his arms around my waist and pulled me to him. Edward looked like he'd been punched in the gut when I didn't resist him.

"I was in the area and remembered that I left a script here. I can come back later," he lied, running his hand through his hair and looking at my shoes. "Sorry for interrupting your date." He fished his keys out of his pocket.

"Don't worry about it." Alec took his ringing phone out of his pocket and frowned. "I gotta take this." He kissed me on my temple and left.

"I'm sorry," I apologized.

"Why are you sorry?" he gritted.

"Because it's not what it looks like," I started to explain, but Edward cut me off.

"It looks like you guys were getting cozy while waiting for your food to arrive and you're almost drunk. Am I wrong?"

"Yes. No," I mumbled. "I asked him over so I could tell him about you and me," I explained. He suddenly didn't look so awful anymore.

"Sorry about that," Alec said, coming back to the door.

"Right. I'll just come back later. Sorry for interrupting your evening." He turned to leave and was halfway to the Volvo, when I suddenly had the urge to reassure him further.

"Edward!" I called.

He slowly turned around.

"I know what you're looking for, Edward. It's here, don't worry." I gave him a small smile and turned back around to see that Alec had left. I could only hope that Edward went away feeling reassured.

I went back to the living room and saw Alec sitting on the couch, typing furiously on his PDA, wearing a frown.

"Hey, everything okay?" I asked, grabbing my glass off the table and settling on the across from him.

"It will be," he sighed. He quickly explained that despite his divorce, he'd always been close to Maggie's family. Her dad had fallen ill and was asking him to visit the hospital, and her mom would like to see him. He sighed. "I really think I should go."

"You should, I'm sure she could use the support," I agreed, thinking of how lonely I had felt in the hospital before Edward arrived.

"I'm really sorry about this." He gave me a sad smile. "This wasn't the way I wanted tonight to go." He pulled me to my feet and drew me close, kissing the top of my head. "You're amazing, you know that? I can't think of too many women who would be encouraging me to spend time with my former in-laws," he chuckled. He tipped my chin up and kissed me on the mouth. Guilt instantly over took me, once again reminding me of the reason I had invited him over in the first place. Now was not the time to talk. It would have to wait until later.

"I can sympathize with Maggie," I said, pulling away. I focused on the buttons on his shirt. "I know this isn't the best time, but at some point we need to talk." I inwardly cringed at my cliché.' Alec didn't miss it.

"Everything okay?"

"Nothing that can't wait until next week," I smiled at him. "You should get going. We'll talk in Chicago." He leaned down to kiss me one more time, this one lingering a little longer than the last. After a chaste peck, he grabbed his keys and left.

A few minutes later the food was delivered. I briefly thought of inviting Edward over but the idea of being alone with him was too tempting and I would feel even guiltier since I hadn't talked to Alec.

I would just have to wait.

Week Two

Edward Masen

I'd been on the set for almost six days for pre-production shots and table readings and I was already exhausted. The screenplay adapter was absolute shit and Alec was constantly furious about his writing not translating properly to the screen. Not that I could blame him. I'd be pissed too, but there seemed to be something else going on.

Normally Alec was laid-back, funny and as much as I hated to say it, a nice guy. To see him blow up over tiny details that would probably end up scrapped anyway was a bit unnerving. A lot of the cast and some crew were on edge because of the tedious filming schedule and his attitude was making things worse.

This was supposed to be the time for Bella and me to build our relationship, but it just never came together. She'd been holed up in her makeshift office/hotel room trying to control the press. If I didn't know any better, I would be under the distinct impression that she was avoiding me. My guess was that she was also trying to deal with Alec's outbursts because they spent a lot of time together, and even though she tried to reassure me, I wasn't feeling particularly confident in us anymore. I couldn't get a read on either one of them.

As much as it bothered me, I was being paid a huge sum of money to do the series of movies, so I tried to ignore my problems and focus on what I'd been hired to do.

The one positive thing that had come from the separation was that I came to the realization I didn't want to wait. I was an idiot for thinking I could. Wasn't a relationship supposed to be learning about each other? So what was the point of postponing everything?

On the seventh day, I couldn't take the avoidance anymore. Through Alice I learned Bella was leaving for New York the next day and would be gone for two weeks. Alice did warn me that she was exhausted and in a bad mood. I decided to risk her attitude, if only to spend a couple of hours with her.

After another disastrous table reading, we broke for the day. I took that as my chance to see her. I needed to see her so she could settle some of the fears I was having. Garnering a few looks as I made my way to the hotel, I could only think about how much trouble I could cause for us if someone figured out Bella was staying here.

I knocked on the door and heard muffled voices before a tall, tan guy answered the door. I didn't know if I should be more shocked by his not wearing a shirt or that he was suddenly shaking my hand saying he was a huge fan of mine.

"It's uhm..." tall guy didn't know how to finish his sentence. I decided to speak up.

"Bella, it's me."

"Edward?" She poked her head around the corner. "Paul, stop blocking the door and let him in. Give me a second, I need to change," she said, her voice growing faint before I heard a door shut. I tried my best to not jump to conclusions and fought the urge to turn around and leave.

Paul let me in and followed me to a sitting area in the middle of the room. I cleared my throat and tried to sound casual when I asked, "So how do you know Bella?"

"Paul is Jake's cousin. Paul Black, this is Edward Masen, but I'm sure you've figured that out," Bella laughed, coming around the corner in a pair of workout shorts and a tank top. I leaned across the table to shake his hand and exchanged the customary pleasantries. She still didn't explain what he was doing there, and more importantly, why he wasn't wearing a shirt. I wasn't stupid enough to believe that being gay ran in the family, especially with the way he blatantly stared at Bella's ass when she walked away to grab a bottle of water. I could feel my nails digging into my palm, restraining myself from punching him in the face.

"So what brings you by?" Paul asked, leaning back on the couch.

"I have some things I need to discuss with Bella. In private." I stared at the topless jackass.

"We were pretty much done anyway. Tell Jake I'll give him a call later, okay?" She reached behind the couch and tossed him a shirt, telling him that a dry cleaner should be able to get that stuff out.

After getting dressed, he leaned over and kissed her cheek and shook my hand. He told her to call him when she got back in town, then picked up a large, heavy-looking fabric bag and left.

The moment the door clicked, I bombarded her with questions.

Why the fuck was he not wearing a shirt, why was she undressed, and why had she been avoiding me? Eventually my questions got to be too much and she held up her hand.

"To answer your questions, the reason Paul was here was because he's a massage and physical therapist, which also explains why I was undressed. He wasn't wearing a shirt because he accidentally spilled some lotion on it, so he took it off to wash it and was letting it dry." She motioned toward the massage table behind me.

"To answer your other question," she said in a softer tone, moving to sit next to me, "I have not been avoiding you. I've been putting out fires. It's what I do, Edward. With something this big, I'm doing the job of at least three people. I'm sorry. Every time I've tried to get a free moment, something else comes up. Tonight I was trying to relax before I leave in the morning. And yes, Alec and I have talked about us."

"Why wasn't Alice helping you? I thought she was supposed to make your job easier."

"Let's not talk about Alice. Right now, you're here, we have zero interruptions and I've missed having you around."

Bella Swan

"I'm sorry I've been so busy. I promise I won't let it happen again." I squeezed his hand. "I just want you to know that I don't need to think about anything. A month from now, I'm still going to want you. Please don't make me wait."

"We are definitely on the same page I've been doing some thinking and it's been hard for me not to be able to see you or talk to you for the past couple of weeks. I've missed you and I don't want to go that long without you again. I'd like to take back our six-week rule." He smiled and lightly kissed me, then pulled me in for a tight hug.

"So what do we do now?" I bit on my bottom lip, hoping to come across as shy and innocent. He didn't buy it and laughed at my feeble attempt.

"Now," he said, standing me up. "We go in that bedroom, and finish what we started on your couch."

Oh sweet mother of God.

I simply nodded and led him to the master bedroom.

It was completely dark in the room, and a part of me was glad because while I'm not shy about my body, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't self-conscious. I flipped on a small light so that we could see where we were going, but it was still dark enough that I didn't feel awkward.

Edward had seen me naked before, but this was under much different circumstances. .

"I hate to ruin the moment, but...protection?" he said, looking hopeful.

"I don't carry a gun."

He laughed. "Well, I'm glad to hear that just in case I do something to piss you off…which knowing me I probably will," he joked.

"Oh hell, hang on." I went to one of my bags, quickly pulled out a shiny foil packet and tossed it to him.

"I was going to suggest running down to the gift shop, but why do you have these?"

"Wishful thinking."

"Fair enough."

He pulled me back to him, kissing me hard and fast, backing me up to where my ass hit the side of the bed. I reached for his shirt at the same time he reached for mine, and we broke our kiss to remove the clothing.

I motioned for him to join me in the middle of the bed. He quickly shimmied out of his jeans and crawled on top of me. The kisses started as frantic and then turned slow and languid. I took the time to truly enjoy myself because I didn't know the next time we would be together.

He dipped his head and made his way down to my chest, pausing briefly to snap open the front clasp. I let out a deep sigh which quickly turned into a moan as he gave them both his full attention. Sensing my need, he slid down his freehand and rubbed between my legs, his eyes staring at me with an intensity I'd never seen before. I squirmed in pleasure. What he was doing, combined with his stare, all became too much.

"Edward?" I whispered, "I need you," was all I could say.

"Can we please get rid of these?" He pushed his hips into mine to make his point.

I nodded. He quickly helped me out of my shorts and took off his boxers, flinging them somewhere in the room. Despite that it was almost entirely dark I was able to see all of Edward for the first time.

Christ on a cracker.

I didn't worry about how it was going to fit, or if it hurt, instead I could only wonder about why I had waited so damn long. He took hold of my knees and spread them apart. I closed my eyes at the feeling of him being so close. I could hear him tear the foil packet and then feel his body back on mine. He slowly rubbed his tip, spreading the wetness and creating more.

"Bella," he said softly, leaning down to kiss me.

"Hmm?" I murmured against his lips.

"Thank you." Those were the last coherent words either of us spoke for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> E/N:
> 
> So what did you think? You like? Yes, no, maybe? Let me know, I'd love to hear your thoughts and opinions.
> 
> As far as reviews go, you all have options this time! When you review, I can either send you a teaser of the next chapter OR I can send you the a mini-chapter of what the conversation was between Alec and Bella. Here's the catch, if you want the conversation, it will take me a while to get it to you because it's only partially written. It's completely up to you!
> 
> Also, my husband has come back from Iraq, so this story will be going on a small hiatus because I'll be brutally honest, writing fanfic is a hobby, my family is my life and takes a front seat right now.
> 
> Fic rec's:
> 
> Mail Order Bride by LadyGrynwald
> 
> Tuesday's Gone by nerac
> 
> Need to Escape by Lostmyluggage (this is a RPF and I am SO ADDICTED. On Twilighted only)


	23. It's Just the Morning After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just the Morning After
> 
> I'll make this quick because the A/N at the bottom is doozy.
> 
> I have to give mad love to my beta, Irritable_Grizzzly. She is the Betty to my Veronica, the cat to my pajamas, the Vanilla to my Ice. I wouldn't have been able to get to the end of this chapter without her support and sage ass-kickings.
> 
> Disclaimer: SM owns all.

Edward Masen

"Thank you?"

I fucking said thank you?

I could now consider myself an even a bigger douche than I had given myself credit for. Of course I meant it, for so many reasons, but I just had to open my big mouth and tell her that right before I was about to have sex with her?

Just thinking about it caused me to get embarrassed all over again. I cringed at the memory, but couldn't help replaying it over and over in my mind as a form of self-torture.

Thankfully I was alone while I had my moment of self-loathing. Bella woke me up early to tell me she was leaving to catch her flight, but promised she would call when she landed. I vaguely remember her kissing me and trying to pull her down, but she left anyway. At least this time, I knew she was coming back, and even better, was that she was coming back to me.

I rolled over onto my stomach, ignoring the raging morning wood and took in the smell of her perfume and the remnants of massage oils. I glanced up at the clock and realized that I had to be in wardrobe in an hour and if I was late, I'd have a whole lot of people pissed-off at me. I had a sterling reputation for being punctual and I wasn't about to ruin it because I had sex. Well, not just sex, but mind blowing, passionate, willing-to-fly-to-New York-to-do-it again-sex.

Last night had been nothing short of perfect. She was soft and warm and the way her legs wrapped around me, it felt like she was trying to bring me closer to her more than just physically. The way we moved in sync, it was as if we'd been together for years.

It was true that I had never met anyone quite like her before. She was smart, gorgeous, and had no problem going after what she wanted. How could I not admire her for that? She kept me on my toes, constantly wondering how I could make myself better to be good enough for her.

That was when it hit me. I was a walking cliché, or in this moment, a naked walking cliché. I'd had the best sex of my life and I was in love with the girl in the morning. But it was more than that. My feelings had been growing stronger by the day and I thoroughly enjoyed her company. Knowing that she returned my feelings on some level, I allowed myself to go there, willing to take a chance on rejection, but also opening myself to something that had the potential to be great.

I quickly got dressed and realized that several people had seen me come in, and while it might seem normal for an actor to leave a hotel, it's more than a little suspicious when they're not a guest. I called Jasper and told him where I was, asking him to come and pick me up. He just laughed and told me I owed him big.

He called twenty minutes later and let me know he was at the back entrance. Apparently after I called him, he told Alice and she had arranged for the hotel to let me sneak out the back. I got down to the car and was met by a smirking Jasper and a very smug Alice. I could have strangled both of them.

"Edward, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were glowing," Alice said, peering over the top of her sunglasses.

"Shut up," I grumbled. Then a thought occurred to me. "Why aren't you in New York with Bella? Aren't you her right-hand-man or something?"

She looked at me in surprise. "She didn't tell you?" I shook my head. "I thought she would have."

"Tell me what?"

"I don't work for her anymore."

"She fired you?"

"Why do you assume I'm fired? How do you know I didn't quit?"

"You quit on your best friend?"

"No, I quit on my boss so that I could keep my best friend."

"Oh."

"I will keep doing her PR stuff because God knows she's got a big mouth. I'm just not her assistant anymore. Someone else is doing that now."

"I guess that makes sense."

"We thought so too."

"Why didn't you tell me before?"

"You had other things on your mind." She wiggled her eyebrows and winked at me. "Besides, like I said, I thought she would have told you."

"I think we've established she didn't. What's important is that we have some business to discuss," Jasper said, finally joining in the conversation.

"What now?" I sighed.

"Word on set is that Alec's been acting crazy, so I called Tyler, Alec's agent, and he said that he gets like this when he's stressed, so you're just going to have to ride it out. His attitude should get better once filming starts next week."

"Good. I wasn't sure how much more of this I could take." I figured it had to be more than just stress. Even though she never said anything, I was assuming Bella had broken up with Alec before getting together with me. She liked him and wouldn't have wanted to string him along.

"Moving on…Carlisle has been trying to get a hold of you since last night-"

"But I dealt with it," Alice chimed in.

"What did he want now?"

"Media stuff, don't worry about it." Alice waved her hand. "I'll let you know when you have to do something or be somewhere. Until then, you just smile pretty and say your lines and all is well in the world."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever."

Later that morning I had just finished with the wardrobe department and was feeling a little uneasy about the way a few of the women were looking at me when I was changing clothes. Thank god Bella had issued a ban on camera phones or any photography not sanctioned by the studio. Any closed- set photos would result in firing, and if no individual fessed up, the entire department would pay, if they could figure out where it was taken.

I was walking from one trailer to another when I got a text from Bella, promising she would call me later on, but wanted to let me know she was thinking about me. That alone made the rest of my day. I felt like I was back in high school, grinning like an ass all day because a girl texted me.

I had officially given up my balls.

Bella Swan

I was in my hotel room. Charlie's lawyer, J. Jenks, had given me an envelope after the reading of Charlie's last will and testament. Inside were personal items he knew Renee would never care about and most likely throw away, like his birth certificate, college diploma, and childhood pictures. Also included were keys to all the houses that were now in my possession, along with a letter.

I must have read that letter several dozen times. By now I had it memorized, but it was a small connection to him. In the world of emails and texts, and knowing Charlie's love of technology, a handwritten letter now became one of my most cherished items. I would have to find a way to preserve it.

I texted Edward to let him know he was on my mind. It took me a few days to calm myself after my talk with Alec, but after reading Charlie's letter, I knew I had done the right thing for both of us. Alec deserved someone who could wholeheartedly be in a relationship, and I needed...well, I needed Edward.

I could have called him instead, but I wanted to read Charlie's letter again before meeting with Billy, hoping that his words of encouragement and pride would give me the assurance that I knew what the fuck I was doing.

My phone rang and I was informed that my car was ready to take me to what would be a very strenuous and important meeting. I was essentially handing over the reins to the business. I fired off a quick text to Alice to wish me luck and shut my phone off. I needed to focus.

Three hours later I walked out of the meeting, confident we'd chosen the perfect candidate. All that was left now was for the board of directors to approve our choice and everything would be finalized. I would still be a shareholder, have veto power over any decisions, and would remain an employee on a consulting basis.

I turned my phone back on and saw I had a series of texts and voicemails from Edward, Alice and Emmett. The voicemails from Edward started with him calling to wish me good luck, then wishing I would turn my phone on, and finally insisting I call him before I talked to anyone else. The message between his second and third was from Alice crying and begging me to call her. The last message was from Emmett, letting me know the apartment had sold, I needed to stop by the realtor's office to sign the closing paperwork tomorrow, and that he'd be there for the final inspection.

Ignoring the irritation I felt that Emmett still assumed I would drop everything for him, I called him back first, knowing Alice's call would take a while.

I offered to pick him up from the airport and we were ironing out details when I was interrupted by a call from Renee ordering me to have dinner with her; and not to bring my entourage because she had something very important to tell me of a personal nature. I assumed by "entourage" she meant Edward, by the disdain in her tone.

With the way we'd left things days after Charlie's funeral, I wasn't feeling particularly warm toward her, but she'd been persistently calling the past few weeks and I'd just been as active in ignoring them.

I got back on with Emmett and got a tiny bit of satisfaction when he whined about my insistence that he accompany me to Renee's dinner.

My next call was to Edward, but I was sent directly to his voicemail and left a quick message. There was only left one person left to call. She picked up the first ring.

"Bella?" She sounded as if she was sobbing and sniffling.

"It's me, Ali. What's going on? What's wrong?"

"It's Jasper. He," she hiccupped. "I-I-I-I," she stuttered.

"Al, you're going to need to calm down so I can understand you," I said softly.

"Okay." I heard her take a deep shaky breath and start over. "This afternoon, after we dropped Edward off, Jasper told me he had plans. He said he had a work meeting, and I didn't think anything of it. He asked me to meet him later at a nearby restaurant, so I did."

"I'm assuming he didn't have a work meeting?"

"No. He was with Tanya." She spit the name like venom, not that I could blame her.

"Tanya, as in Edward's sister?"

"Yes, Edward's sister! The same slut who slept with Emmett, in case you forgot," she snapped.

"Okay, so how do you know it wasn't a work meeting?" I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the answer.

"They were kissing. She had him pressed against a wall and he was grabbing her ass."

"Oh."

Edward Masen

The rest of the day was grueling. Many people would think that my profession was easy. Smile, stand around, repeat other people's words, and make lots of money. The truth was that it's incredibly difficult, especially when going on a few hours of sleep, to pay attention to anything. After an hour of my inability to pay attention, Alec called it a day, shooting me a glare that clearly said he would kick my ass if he could.

By the time I got back to my trailer, I was totally exhausted. I opened the door and was shocked to find Tanya pacing up and down.

"Tanya, what the hell are you doing here?"

She spun around with a shocked expression. "You scared me!"

"Why aren't you in LA?"

"I flew out last night. I had some last-minute business out here this morning."

I glanced at my watch, and at the same time, my stomach grumbled. "Okay, if you give me a second to change, we can grab a late lunch or early dinner or something."

"I screwed up, Ed. Badly." I took a moment to take in her appearance. Her eyes were red-rimmed and somewhat puffy. Her makeup was smeared and her hands were shaking.

"You look like hell. Sit down." I motioned to the couch. She sat on the edge, rested her elbows on her knees, and cradled her head in her hands.

"Hey, whatever you did, it couldn't be that bad, right?" I rubbed her back, hoping to calm her down enough to talk to me.

"I ruin everything I touch," she said, but it sounded more like, "IbruinrythingImuch."

"What are you talking about?"

"I ruined Bella and Emmett and now Jasper and Alice."

I looked at her, confused.

She gathered herself and continued. "I called you when I got into town because I was going to see if you wanted to get together. It was turned off." She looked at me as if she was waiting for an explanation. I offered her none, but I couldn't hold back the smile I felt starting to form.

"You got laid!" She pointed a finger and gave me a small smile.

"I'm not telling you anything."

"You like her."

I nodded. "This isn't about me right now. Keep going."

"Fine," she sighed. "Your phone was turned off, so I called Jasper to see what your schedule was and if we could still meet. He told me you were busy all day, but then he mentioned he had a favor to ask of me and said he wanted to meet up..." Her voice trailed off, implying something I really hoped wasn't true.

"Please tell me you didn't sleep with my best friend." I removed my hand from her back and stared at her, hoping this was still my sister; the person who'd given me such great relationship advice just a few weeks back.

"No!" she insisted, and then continued to explain that Jasper told her he wanted to propose to Alice. He wanted help picking out a ring and since she was like a sister to him, he valued her opinion. I wasn't entirely surprised that he was thinking of moving forward with Alice, but was puzzled that he didn't ask Bella.

"Anyway, we met, and we ordered a bottle of champagne to celebrate. One bottle turned into three. Edward" she said, and turned her body to look at me, "you have to believe that we were really drunk. I don't know what happened. We left the restaurant, and we were right outside. I started talking about I was telling him how happy I was that he found such a great girl and suddenly it was hard to see him as that little boy, you know?"

No, I didn't know.

"The combination of the alcohol and just everything going on lately, I couldn't help myself." Her eyes shifted to the floor.

"So you did try to fuck him? Christ, Tanya. Do you realize the damage you could've done? Thank God, nobody saw you!" It was my turn to pace.

I heard her mutter something under her breath.

"What did you say?"

"Alice saw."

I stopped and sighed. "What happened?"

"She said his name and then pushed some guy out of a cab and left. Jasper chased after her. He won't return my calls-"

"Can you blame him?" I yelled. "When are you going to realize the world doesn't revolve around you? Why did you come here? So I could comfort you and tell you that you didn't screw up? To try and get him to talk to you? I won't do that. This is your mess, you clean it up."

"But, I thought you would understand."

"What in the hell would make you think I would understand?" I took a deep breath. A million questions were running through my mind and before I could say something I would really regret, I told her to leave. She was clearly shocked, but looked at the expression on my face and was smart enough not to say anything else.

I quickly called Bella and left a message, disappointed that she didn't answer. Before I could call Jasper, my phone beeped, alerting me that the battery was dying. I figured he was probably trying to straighten things out with Alice anyway, so I'd let him get in touch with me. I turned the phone off and plugged it in before turning on the alarm clock to wake me up in an hour. I was mentally and physically exhausted.

It seemed as if I'd just closed my eyes when the alarm went off. Immediately all the crap that was going on came rushing back. I looked at the clock and remembered there was only an hour time difference between Chicago and New York. I selfishly hoped Bella was close to being done wrapping things up and would be back in a few days. She'd been gone for just over twelve hours, but to say I missed her presence was an understatement.

I powered the phone back on and dialed into my voicemail, relieved to find a message from Bella Without listening to the entire message, I hung up and called her back.

"Hello?"

"Bella?"

"Edward, hi." She sounded distant.

"I just saw you called. How are you?"

"Tired and stressed. I'm sorry, how are you?"

"If this is a bad time? We can talk later."

"That sounds great, actually" she sighed and sounded a bit sad when she continued, "I've got a lot going on. I'm on my way to get Emmett from the airport and then we're meeting with Renee." I felt like I'd been kicked in the gut. All the air left me at the mention of Emmett.

"Emmett?"

"Yes, Emmett. Is that a problem?" she snapped, catching me off-guard.

"Have I done something wrong that I'm not aware of? I was hoping to call and tell you what a great time I had last night and wondered when I would get to see you again. What's with the attitude?" My voice was getting progressively louder. "I would hope that we were at least close enough that you could tell me what's wrong, but instead you snap at me and turn to Emmett. The guy treated you like shit for years, and yet he's the one you go to."

She laughed with an undertone of bitterness. "That's what you think I'm doing? Maybe if you had asked instead of making assumptions, I would have told you that I was looking forward to hearing your voice and letting you know that Emmett and I sold our apartment and I'm about to make a clean break from New York. I was hoping to tell you that I also had a great time last night and was happy the way things were turning out. That I was excited about moving forward. With you."

"Bella, I'm sorry. I didn't know-"

"I know. Look, with this thing with Renee, selling the apartment, and whatever happened between Alice and Jasper, I've got a lot on my mind. I do want to talk to you about it, just not now, okay?" Her voice was softer, more the tone that I was used to.

"So...you enjoyed yourself last night?" I teased.

"I did," she said coyly, "did you?"

"Would I have tried to pull you back into bed if I hadn't?"

"I'm really looking forward to a repeat performance. Especially that thing you did with your tongue when your fingers were-"

"You liked that, huh?" I cut her off; I would have loved to hear her continue but hearing Bella talking dirty would make things incredibly painful.

"Would it be weird if I said I missed you?" I asked softly.

"Would it be weird if I said I missed you too?" She paused. "I hate to do this, but I just pulled up to JFK. I'm not sure how long dinner is going to take, but can I call you after? Maybe we can continue the conversation when I'm alone. And in bed."

"I know that can be arranged. Good luck with your dinner. Call me if you need anything."

"Thank you. Bye." She hung up before I could reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My rec's:
> 
> Secret Lies and Family Ties by IdPattThat
> 
> Bella Osa by Myg
> 
> Between Crimson and Blue by Antiaol
> 
> Coming Through the Rye by Mac214
> 
> Last Tango in Forks by Awesomesauce76


	24. It's Just Renee

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 24
> 
> It's Just Renee
> 
> AN: Hi! So I have a couple things to say and then we'll get to the story.
> 
> The second thing is I have to thank whomever has been rec'ing my story. In the past couple days, I've gotten a HUGE jump in alerts, so THANK YOU to all of you who have been reading and telling others about It's Just Lunch.
> 
> Lastly, I have to give a HUGE thank my beta, Irritable_Grizzzly, who has put up with more of my shit and re-writes than I can even count.
> 
> As usual, I don't own any of SM's intellectual property (intellectual being used loosely).

Bella Swan

"Remind me why I have to go to this dinner?" Emmett pouted as he climbed into the back of the town-car.

"Because you apparently feel that I'm incapable of dealing with the realtor."

"You're punishing me?" he laughed.

"Well that and I'm too chicken-shit to face her alone," I admitted. "She wants something and I'm not sure what it is."

"Don't worry, I've got your back." He quickly squeezed my hand for comfort. "Besides, you essentially own her now."

We spent the rest of the ride into the city catching up. I admitted that Edward and I were officially a couple. He was happy for me and let me know things with Rosalie were going really well. If someone had told me a year ago that Emmett and I would not only not be married, but discussing our new relationships, I would have said they were delusional.

"So Rosalie is okay with you being here alone with me?" I raised an eyebrow.

"She's heard some pretty gruesome stories, including Renee's behavior regarding the funeral. She said you needed all the support you could get. I really think you guys would get along. Maybe when we're back in LA, we can all get together. Bring your movie star too."

"Yeah, um, that might be a little weird. We haven't really…discussed how serious we are yet," I quietly added.

"Ma'am, we're here," the driver said. I groaned in response.

"Come on. We drink, eat some, drink more and put up with her bullshit for an hour and then we're out, okay? We can go do something scandalous. It's been a while." He grinned and wiggled his eyebrows. I laughed and agreed, letting him help me out of the car.

We were immediately surrounded by flashes; either Renee had called them or someone famous was inside. I felt my defenses go up and I was no longer in a relaxed mood. More than being defensive, I was pissed. There wasn't anything I could do to get away from cameras and media, but this was supposed to be a private dinner and she purposely drew attention to herself.

"Smile," Emmett whispered in my ear. "It'll be over soon enough."

We pushed through the photographers and made our way inside. We walked quickly through the lobby and were shown to our table in the back. There sat Renee, in all her botoxed and rhinestone glory. She looked, for lack of a better word, happy. I had a feeling it had to do with the younger man with a slight tint of gray sitting next to her.

"Isabella, my dear. It's so lovely to see you!" Renee stood quickly and grabbed me into a tight hug, kissing both my cheeks. I stiffened under her touch, wondering what her motivation was for the elaborate show she was putting on. "And Emmett," she gushed. "It's so lovely to see you two back together, I always knew she was a fool for letting you go. I'm glad you took her back."

Emmett looked at me and frowned, already sensing something was wrong. "It's lovely to see you too Mrs. Swan, but I'm sorry to tell you that Bella and I aren't back together." Then he smirked and added, "I'm banging an A-lister back in Cali."

"Aren't you going to introduce us?" I gestured to the man who was patiently standing next to Renee. It was at that moment I realized what was so fucking important that Renee insisted I meet with her. She was introducing me to her new boyfriend and putting on a show for him. The anxiousness I'd had before was nothing compared to the hurt and anger I currently felt rising in my chest.

"Of course! Where are my manners. Isabella and Emmett, I'd like you to meet my friend, Phil Dwyer." We quickly shook hands and sat our selves down. I ordered a martini, even though I really wanted a glass of wine, but the vodka would still my nerves faster.

"So what is it you do, Phil?" I leaned forward, pretending to be interested, earning a large smile from Renee.

"I work for the Yankee's front office," he boasted.

"And how old are you, Phil?" I batted my eyelashes.

"Uh, thirty-eight." He shifted in his seat.

"Isn't that funny? You're not all that much older than I am."

"Isabella," Renee hissed.

Just then our drinks arrived. I slammed back the martini and ordered another before the waiter walked away.

"The Yankee's, huh? That's pretty awesome," Emmett meekly offered.

"So how long have you been fucking my mother, Phil?"

"Excuse me?" He grabbed the knot of his tie, loosening it a little.

"Tell me, Renee," I glared at her, watching her shrink back in her chair, "did you wait until Charlie's body was cold in the ground before you moved on, or was this going on while he was still breathing?"

"I met Renee a couple of months ago," he offered. His eyes were darting between Renee and me. It made sense now; that's when the phone calls had started. While I'd been nearly comatose with grief, Renee had been sleeping around.

"That's quite enough of your attitude and you will address me as your mother." Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Emmett texting someone, but I couldn't find a moment to really care.

"You aren't my mother. You gave birth to me and we share some genetic material, but that's all." I turned to Phil. "Did you know my father died two months ago?"

"I wasn't aware of that, but I'm sorry for your loss," he apologized. He looked sincere enough.

"Did you know that my dad was Charlie Swan, as in the Charlie Swan that played poker with Steinbrenner? The same Charlie Swan who was a faithful husband and amazing father until the day he died?" His eyes got bigger and he stared at Renee. I could see the pieces finally fall into place.

"I'm sorry, Isabella, I really had no idea. Your mother never said she was married before we met. She told me her last name was Higginbotham."

Thank God my martini arrived. Before I drank it I ordered another one along with a few tequila shots.

"She didn't. That's so interesting. Don't you think it's interesting, that my mother is using her maiden name, Emmett?" I elbowed him in the ribs, no longer thinking clearly, but enjoying that my lips were starting to numb a little.

"Bella, I think you've had enough, okay? Why don't you try some of the bread?" He slid the dinner roll in front of me.

"I don't think I've had nearly enough to put up with this bullshit," I snapped, earning some interested looks from nearby patrons.

"Isabella, lower your voice," the whore hissed.

"Renee, with all due respect, it might be in your best interest to call her Bella," Emmett advised.

"How long?" I challenged.

"How long what?" she asked cautiously.

"How long did you wait before climbing into Phil's bed? Was it while he was still hooked up to the machines? Or was it when-" And then it hit me. I stood up, unable to sit still any longer. "You bitch! You fucking whore!" I yelled, not caring who was looking. "You were fucking him the day we came to pick out Charlie's suit for the funeral!" Renee's face paled, confirming everything I never wanted to know.

"Is-Bella, it's not like that!" she protested.

"Oh, then what was it like?"

"Phil and I were friends-"

"Phil," I said, cutting her off, "have you slept in Renee's bed, the one in her cushy penthouse on Madison?"

Phil nodded.

"Did you have the decency to have the mattress changed before you brought home a new man? You know what, don't answer that, I already know." I leveled Renee with the most menacing stare I could manage. "I want you out."

"Out? Out where?" she scoffed.

"Out of the penthouse."

"You can't do that!"

"Like hell I can't. It was left to me, you know that. You were there for the reading of the will."

"Where will I go? You can't leave me on the streets!"

"Maybe Phil would be happy to take you in." I glanced at Phil who was absolutely mortified at the exchange taking place.

"Maria has a spare room, I'm sure," Emmett joined in, clearly enjoying Renee's facade falling apart as much as I was.

"Emmett, I've had enough of this company." I stood and gathered my purse and held out my hand to Renee's boy-toy and said, "Phil, as much as it pains me to say this, you're a very nice guy and I apologize for how I've acted toward you. But this woman," I motioned to Renee, "is a gold-digging whore. You could do better."

"You ready to go, Em?"

"You have no idea." He stood and placed his hand on my back and guided me through the restaurant and out the front door. Thankfully the press was all but gone at this point, and our town-car was waiting for us.

"Sorry it took so long, man." Emmett clapped the guy on the back. It dawned on me that Emmett had been texting the driver.

Once we were settled in the back, I curled into Emmett and sobbed. He asked if he could do anything and I shook my head. I just wanted to get back to the hotel, knowing that Alice would be there by now. Having two of the people here who meant the most to me was comforting, but right now, all I really wanted was Edward.

Edward Masen

After hanging up with Bella, I needed a cold shower. Desperately.

I couldn't shower in the studio lot trailer, so I headed back to the hotel. I was able to make it to my room unnoticed, and didn't bother answering the phone, knowing by the ringtone it was Jasper. I never switched it back from how Bella had set it up. It was just another way to keep me close to her.

I should have at least sent a text to thank him for bringing my luggage to my room, but I was too furious and knew if I talked to him, I'd say something I'd regret.

The cold water hitting my back did the job physically, but mentally not so much. I couldn't stop thinking about her. The way she sounded and the idea of her pretty little mouth saying such dirty things was not easily forgotten.

After toweling off and slipping into something more comfortable, I flipped on the TV and ordered room service. I debated on whether to call Bella, but I was afraid of smothering her. She could be in the middle of dinner and I didn't want to interrupt.

Instead I flipped on a Criminal Minds marathon and was just about to pass out when I heard my phone ringing. I was ready to chuck the damn thing against the wall when I saw it was an unknown number with a New York area code.

"Bella?" I answered.

"Actually, it's Emmett. I got your number out of her phone. I hope that's okay," he whispered.

"Yeah, it's fine. Where's Bella? Is she okay? Why are you whispering?"

"She's in bed. She's had a long night. I'm in the hallway outside their room. She thinks I'm checking in with Rose. She'd kill me if she knew I was calling you," he chuckled.

"What do you mean a long night? It's not even ten o'clock over there, right?"

"She's in bed with Alice. They're sharing sob stories right now and eating ice cream and watching some chick movie where everyone has accents."

He took a deep breath.

"The dinner with Renee was fucking epic, and not in a good way. I'll let her tell you about it, but she's pretty upset. I know you guys are...close. I think you need to call her."

"What the hell happened? Did Renee do or say something to piss her off?"

"Oh, I definitely think she did something, or more like someone..." he let his voice trail off.

"Oh, shit."

"Yeah."

"Thank you Emmett. For being there for her."

"It's what friends do, bro." Then he hung up. Now that they'd straightened out their issues and Emmett was treating Bella right, I saw that he was a good guy and could even see us eventually being friends.

I waited a few minutes before calling Bella. When she answered, her tone of voice was far from playful like it was earlier. She sounded so sad.

"How was dinner?" I asked softly.

"It was a full-blown disaster." I could hear her sniffling.

"Is that Edward?" I heard Alice ask. Before Bella could say anything, she said, "Just because Jasper doesn't have any sisters, doesn't mean he's not going to try and fuck someone else. Birds of a feather, you know."

Oh shit..

"Bella?" I tried to get her attention.

"Alice, he's not like that and you know it," she sighed, and my heart grew hearing her defend me.

"I didn't think Jasper had a history of fucking his sister. People hide things Bella. He's an actor, it's what he does. He lies for a living." Holy shit. What did she say? I needed to talk to Jasper.

"Uh, Bella? What did she just say?"

I heard the sheets rustle and some creaking. I assumed it was Bella moving off the bed.

"Edward, I'm sorry. There's a lot going on and I really do want to talk to you. I appreciate you calling." Her voice echoed.

"Are you in the bathroom?" I chuckled.

"Yeah. It's the only way I could get away from Alice's comments and Emmett is constantly watching to see if I'm gonna have a breakdown."

I laughed. "So, I guess Alice isn't doing too well."

"Alice is bitter toward all men right now, so don't take anything she says personall . I know you would never do what Jasper did." She paused. "Right?"

"Bella, I don't like just having to kiss another woman for a role, let alone off-screen." The thought of touching anyone else made me sick." I sighed. "So what's going on with Renee?"

"The short version is that Renee is a whore and has been sleeping with someone since before the funeral. I kicked her out of the penthouse and now have to figure out what to do with that property.

"How are you holding up? Is there anything I can do?"

"As stupid as it sounds, I really just need a hug," she sniffled and laughed sadly at the same time. "Unless you find a break in-between call times to fly here and give me one, just knowing you cared enough to call means a lot right now."

Everything went quiet for a few seconds. "Can we talk about something else please?"

"Fine. What the hell was Alice saying about Jasper and Tanya?"

"Oh. Uhm, Well...I guess you'd find out eventually, but while Jasper was trying to tell Alice what happened and get her to listen to him, he let it slip that he and Tanya had slept together in college."

"Please tell me you're joking." I balled my fists, wishing there was something to hit.

"Look, I don't wanna say. You should probably talk to Jasper to get a more accurate version since. Alice hates anything with a Y-chromosome, and the version I have might be slightly skewed."

"Fair enough."

"Edward, I'm really sorry to do this, but I'm exhausted. I didn't get much sleep last night," she chuckled, but continued, "and I'm mentally worn out. Is it okay if I call you tomorrow?"

"Absolutely. Take care of yourself."

"Goodnight Edward." She hung up before I could say anything. I briefly wondered if that was a habit she'd picked up from Emmett.

I quickly texted Emmett and confirmed what hotel they were staying at, then ordered several different arrangements to be delivered to her room the next day. They would be waiting for her when she returned.

I called Jasper and left a voicemail asking him meet me at my trailer in the morning before we started our first day of shooting. The scene we were set to film was one where I'm angry and discover I'd been set up by my best friend. The irony was almost too much, except Jasper hadn't set me up to fail. He'd just lied to my face, repeatedly, when I'd questioned him over the years.

My next call was to Tanya, which also went to voicemail, and I couldn't help but wonder if they were together. The thought made me physically ill. I couldn't understand why they'd hidden their past from me. I would've been irritated sure, but eventually I would have realized it made sense. They were always together and got along really well, but each time I would ask either of them about it, they insisted their feelings were nothing more than familial.

I would have eventually been able to deal with it. The lying and sneaking around I could not.

I wasn't entirely sure what to do. They'd both reached out to me and I had ultimately turned them away. Jasper was a grown man and he needed to fix this with Alice all by himself. I had a feeling that Bella felt the same way and would comfort her best friend, but not get in the middle of their problems.

I threw my phone on the dresser, turned off the TV and fell into a fitful sleep. Before I passed out completely, my last thought was how much better I would sleep if I had Bella curled up with me.

Bella Swan

I came out of the bathroom feeling lighter than I had all evening. I already knew Edward cared for me, but his call did nothing but make my affections grow stronger. "He's going to cheat on you, just like Jasper did to me," Alice warned as I climbed back into bed.

"No, he won't," I insisted.

"Jasper told me about how he was before we met them. He's a man-whore, Bella. He liked to sleep around and never slept with the same girl twice unless she somehow stayed till the morning. He's going to use you until he's not interested and then he's going to move on."

"Hey," I snapped, "I understand you're going through some serious shit, and I'm here to support you, but stop taking it out on me and be quiet before you say something you'll regret. I've had an emotional day too.

"You really think your mother sleeping around is worse than my boyfriend cheating on me?" she asked incredulously.

"Are you really trying to turn this into a pissing contest over who had the worse day? I'm sorry about what you've been through, but getting bitter and nasty won't help matters. I'm going to sleep and I highly suggest you do the same. I love you, but if you continue to go on about this, I'm going to ask you to sleep somewhere else.

Her mouth dropped and then quickly shut. She huffed and glared at me, and then her features softened. "You're right," she admitted. "I'm sorry. I think we just need to sleep." She crossed the room and gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek. "Sweet dreams."

She climbed into her bed and flipped off the light. I passed out soon after, but not before thinking about how much better I would sleep if I had Edward next to me.

It felt like I'd only been asleep for a few hours, but when I opened my eyes, morning light was shining in and I could hear Alice screeching on the phone. I assumed it could only be one person who'd get a rise out of her like that.

She came out of the bathroom and seeing I was awake, threw my phone at me. I looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "Jasper," she mouthed.

I rolled my eyes and picked up the phone.

"Hey Jasper."

"Bella? I was afraid Alice had hung up on me."

"Yes, well given what's happened, I would say she has every right to. Why are you calling me at-" I glanced at the clock, "seven in the morning?"

"I was hoping you would be the voice of reason. Edward isn't answering my calls, and Alice refuses to speak to me, so who else was I supposed to call?"

"I'm staying out of this. It's not my business, but if you drag me into it, God help me to have the restraint not to remove your testicles and keep them in a jar on my mantle."

I glanced at Alice's when I heard her snicker and she flashed me a sad and appreciative smile.

"I swear it wasn't what it looked like. We'd been drinking. I was planning to propose to Alice and we were celebrating and-"

"Being drunk only loosens your inhibitions to do what you would have done sober if you had the balls. It doesn't make you do things you wouldn't normally do. And what did I just say about dragging me into this? It's your mess, you fix it!" I ended the call and looked at Alice.

"Thanks."

"Why did you answer my phone?"

"It was ringing and I was going to turn it off so we could sleep more, but then I saw who it was and I couldn't help myself."

"I meant what I said. I'm staying out of it. I will be your shoulder to cry on, because that's what friends do, but I beg you, don't put Edward or me in the middle of this."

"I understand. Thank you for letting me crash with you on such short notice."

"I'd hardly call this crashing," I laughed, motioning to our suite.

She picked up her phone. "How the hell did she get my number?" Alice screamed, scaring the ever living hell out of me.

"Alice, indoor voice please."

"Sorry. Tanya just left me a voicemail asking for me to call her back," she raged.

"What are you going to do?" I asked gently.

"I don't know." She sat on the edge of the bed and started to cry. "I love him so much and I don't understand how he could do this to me. We were going to move in together, I thought we were going to get married. What did I do wrong? Why her of all people. He always said she was like his sister and I never had anything to worry about. What if this wasn't the first time he's gone behind my back, but was just the first time he got caught?" She was beginning to panic.

"Oh God! I have to get tested. Who knows if he's been with some other skank. He could be a walking petri dish or something." She began hyperventilating.

"Alice, calm down." I moved next to her and rubbed her back. "You guys were almost always together, and if he wasn't with you, he was with Edward. I don't know what happened yesterday, but can I offer my opinion?"

She nodded.

"I think you need to tell Jasper you need your space right now, and then let him know when you'll be ready to talk. You need to take a spa day while I'm out with Emmett figuring out what to do with Renee. Then we're going to pack our bags and fly to Chicago. You will be the bad-ass professional we know you are, and then after the movie is done we are going to see the house that Charlie left me in Maui. Maybe we'll even call Rosalie and see if she's available too. How does that sound?"

"Perfect." She sniffled and then stood, straightening up and holding her arms open for a big hug.

"Now that's hot," Emmett commented.

"Fuck off, Emmett," Alice laughed, wiping away her tears.

"Hey, Emmett, you think Rosalie would be open to going to Hawaii for a week?"

"Hawaii, as in tanning oils and scantily-clad women in bikinis? I don't know if she is, but I sure as hell am!" He fist-pumped the air, making us laugh and relieving the tension.

"Girls only, but we'll have a pillow fight with you in mind, okay?" I patted his chest as I walked to the bathroom. "We're no longer together, so you'd better be gone when I come out of the shower."

"Sorry to say, but you no longer tempt, Swan. I'm gonna grab some coffee and head to the apartment early to see if there's anything we've missed."

As soon as Emmett left, we got ready for the day, or at least in my case. Alice sat around in a plush bathrobe calling around the city for various spa treatments.

The inspection went exceptionally well and when the new owners said they were ecstatic to own a home formerly occupied by famous people, it caused Emmett and me to roll our eyes and make faces behind their backs. I think the finality of it all made us a little sad, but also relieved. Our nervous energy manifested into fits of immaturity. While we would still see each other and love each other to some degree, we were officially done. There was nothing physical connecting us anymore.

Emmett offered to take a cab back to the realtor's office so I could make the call to Jenks about Renee in peace. I expected to feel some kind of remorse or sadness at what I was about to do, but I felt nothing of the sort. I couldn't care less what Renee or the public would think of me if this got out, which it most likely would. Then I came up with another idea.

When Jenks finally answered, I told him I wanted Renee out of the house, and he should issue a restraining order if absolutely necessary. I also told him that she needed to be served a gag order, preventing her from talking to any media outlets. I asked him to give her twenty-four hours to be out of the penthouse, along with all of her personal possessions. If there was anything of sentimental value, she could take it. Anything of Charlie's was to be left untouched and if I discovered she'd stolen something, I would come after her with everything I had.

Jenks was silent, only asking a question when completely necessary. He asked what I would like to do with the remaining items, such as furniture, and I told him to auction them off and donate the money to Charlie's favorite charity in his name. By selling all the stuff Renee bought with his money, at least some good would come of this.

At the end of our call, Jenks finally spoke up. He asked if I was certain this was what I wanted and he needed to know if there was any chance I would back out or change my mind when I was less heated. I told him no. My moth-Renee had taken too many liberties and was turning the Swan name into something to be ashamed of with her blatant disregard of my father's memory.

"Jenks," I sighed, "she's using her maiden name, not her married one." He gasped. Since he and Charlie were best friends, I knew that bit of knowledge would push past any hesitancy on his part. He told me he would get started on the paperwork immediately and even get two of New York's finest to accompany him to serve her the papers personally.

After hanging up, I sighed and leaned back. I sent Edward a quick text that I was looking forward to seeing him tonight. He sent one back almost immediately, offering to pick me up from the airport. I giggled and told him I would think about it.

We pulled up to the building and Emmett was out front signing an autograph for a cabbie.

"Hey," I called.

"How'd it go?" he asked, not even looking up.

"Good. She has-" I stopped myself before saying too much in front of the taxi driver.

"It's all done though?" He flashed the driver a grin and looked at me with concern in his eyes.

"It's done. We're done."

We went in the building and left ninety minutes later, each with checks in-hand for a considerable amount of money. "What are you going to do with yours?" I asked, hip-checking him.

"I was thinking hookers and blow. You?"

I frowned. "I was gonna get you hookers and blow."

"Awww, you're so sweet! I knew I loved you for a reason!"

He picked me up and spun me around a couple of times like a doll, then set me back down, laughing hard at my inability to catch my footing, then slipped his arm around my waist to help steady me. It was times like these when I would be looking for photographers, but right now I didn't care. I had a solid friendship with Emmett, Alice and I were leaving for Chicago, and I had Edward impatiently waiting for me to return. There wasn't anything that could spoil my mood.

"So I heard from Maria," Emmett said.

Except that.

"And what did your mother have to say?"

"Renee called and asked to stay with her until she could find new digs." He shrugged, but I could tell there was something more.

"And..."

"And, I might have mentioned to her last night that this might happen and Maria told her no."

I stopped in my tracks. "You mean to tell me that your mom, Renee's best friend, turned her down?"

"Pretty much."

"Why?"

Emmett laughed. "Believe it or not, just because Renee doesn't respect Charlie's memory, doesn't mean everyone else feels the same. Our parents weren't just friends with your mom, but with Charlie too. Plus, I have a feeling Dad might have put the kibosh on it. Maria and Felix were disgusted when I told them what happened."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. You loved your father, but you weren't the only one who was fond of him. You know he was a good man, is it really so hard to believe that other people loved and respected him too?"

"No, but when it was just the two of us, he was different. Most people only saw the Charlie who ran a massive media company. Nobody saw Charlie the dad, you know?"

"I know. I miss him too. He was far more of a father to me than Felix ever was."

"Yeah." I could feel the tears welling up and my nose started to tingle.

"Oh, hey now, no crying. This is a day to celebrate." He turned me so we were staring at each other in the middle of 50th and Lexington and wiped my tears away. "Let's call Alice and have a drink. We can drink to Charlie, celebrate each of us finding someone to make us happy, and hell, I think Alice could use a drink."

I agreed and called Alice and asked if she wanted to meet us, only to find out she was at a nearby spa. We met with her a few minutes later at Fig and Olive. Alice still had dark circles under her eyes, but her skin was glowing and her once short hair was now down to the middle of her back.

"Did you get extensions?" I asked warily. I mean, of course she did, but they just looked so real..

"They look good, right? I was hoping to go for something not so long, but I love them!" she gushed.

"Is it completely wrong for me to say that you are totally fuckable?" Emmett asked, staring wide-eyed.

"Are you saying I wasn't before?" Alice pouted, and then I realized what it was really all about.

"No, you were before, I just think that now it's-"

"Emmett, could you grab us a table? I'd like to talk to Alice for a minute," I cut him off before could say something incredibly stupid. Well, any more than he already had.

"No problem."

I waited for him to leave before grilling her. "I've known you for the better part of a decade and you hate long hair. You've always kept it short, and suddenly you're changing your appearance. This isn't you, Alice."

"Maybe that was the old me and I don't want to be her anymore."

"It's been what, maybe a whole day since it happened and now you're doing this. You look great, but you were just as beautiful two days ago. If he can't see that, it's his problem, not yours."

"I know."

"Really, though, the hair looks amazing. It's weird to see, but I like it. Just don't change who you are on the inside, okay?"

She nodded. "I'm starving. Let's get in there before Emmett eats all the bread."

We strolled in, Emmett silently asking me if she was okay, to which I just nodded. We ordered the most expensive bottle of wine and toasted to old friendships and moving forward.

We let Emmett pay. He ate all the bread.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> o...love Renee? Hate her even more? Tell me! Thoughts about Alice's hair? Did she do the right thing or is she being overly dramatic?
> 
> Fig and Olive is a real place in NYC, and I am addicted to their basil-infused olive oil. It's in the meat-packing district off 6th and 57th in Manhattan.
> 
> As appreciation for review, I'll give an extended teaser of the next chapter. Once the reviews hit 750, I'll post both of the outtakes from the last chapter. If the reviews hit 800, I'll post an outtake Renee's POV of the dinner.
> 
> As always, thank you so much for reading and reviewing.
> 
> Rec's:
> 
> Osa Bella by Myg
> 
> Paper Cutouts by twistedcoincidence
> 
> The Education of Professor Cullen by sheviking


	25. It's Just Switzerland

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Irritable_Grizzzly beta's this bitch and does a phenomenal job, gossip_bangkok preread because she's been with this story from the beginning and is a sweetheart..
> 
> All things Twilight belong are the intellectual property of SM. I use the term intellectually as loosely as possible.
> 
> See you at the bottom.

Edward Masen

Waking up without Bella was not pleasant, but knowing that she'd be back tonight was comforting. Thankfully I had a late call-time, so I was able to relax for most of the morning. Or at least I was relaxed until someone started banging on my door.

I stretched and groaned when I saw the decent-sized tent in my shorts. I yelled at the person that I was coming, finally getting out of bed and over to the door. I saw it was Jasper through the peephole and sighed. I'd hoped he would take my hint and meet me on-set, but no such luck.

I opened the door and stepped inside the bathroom to ease my...tension. Once it was clear that it wasn't going to happen, I adjusted myself and moved to the middle of the room.

"What are you doing here?"

"I had to talk to you."

"I just woke up. I really don't care about what you have to say right now."

"Please. Alice won't talk to me, you won't talk to me, and Bella hung up on me." My head snapped up when he mentioned Bella's name.

"You had the nerve to drag her into this?"

"Actually, she said I could consider myself lucky she didn't take my balls and display them on the mantle. I don't doubt her ability to do it." I couldn't help but smile. It was pretty funny.

"If she removed your balls, that might solve a lot of problems in the future, wouldn't it?" Jasper winced and I almost felt bad. Almost.

"What do you want me to say? Right now it's taking everything I have not to punch you for sleeping with my sister, let alone grinding on her in public in front of your girlfriend."

"Ex-girlfriend."

"Have you talked to Alice?"

"Well kind of. Did you know she was with Bella?"

I ignored his question and waited for him to continue. "When I called Bella this morning, Alice answered and started telling me off. She told me there was nothing to talk about. We were over and she'd be clearing out her stuff from our place and staying with Bella."

"What do you want me to do?" I folded my arms.

"I don't know. Can't you talk to Bella and make Alice change her mind?"

"Not getting involved, dude. We still need to talk about the fact that you were fucking my sister behind my back, and what's worse is when I asked you about it, you fucking lied to my face!" I glared at him, waiting for him to respond.

"We were drunk-" he began.

"Is that always going to be your excuse? You were drunk? That's not a reason, it's an excuse."

"But it's true."

"Excuses only satisfy those who make them. Trust me. The moment you felt something for Tanya, you should have told me, or at least let me know when you two had figured shit out. I wouldn't have been happy about it, but I would've eventually accepted it. Instead you two snuck around for years."

"You want me to tell you I'm sorry? Then fine, I'm sorry we lied to you. We were trying to protect you."

"You were trying to protect yourself from getting your ass kicked."

"Well, yeah," he admitted. "I am sorry for sneaking around with Tanya and you're right. I should've just told you. The last time we were together was a long time ago, so it's really ancient history."

"Until yesterday."

"I swear I had no idea she still felt that way. I only love Alice. She's perfect for me and I know I fucked up. I'll do whatever it takes to get her back."

"It's not me you need to convince."

"Does that mean we're good?"

"Not even close. I've got a lot to think about. In the meantime, stay the fuck away from my sister."

"Consider it already done."

"Good. I need to shower, so you can see yourself out." I slammed the door to the bathroom and hoped he would be gone by the time I was done.

The rest of the morning passed quickly while I read my script and made sure I knew my lines. I was known for being accurate, on time and always ready to go. There were a lot of people ready to replace me at a moment's notice, but most of them were lazy, but I kept my work ethic strong to stay ahead of the game.

I got a text from Bella telling me that she was coming in, and if I remembered her schedule correctly, she would be flying back to Chicago after I was done for the day. She may have thought I was kidding about picking her up at the airport, but I wasn't. We were far from an average couple, but knowing she'd had a rough few days, I wanted to be there for her as quickly as possible.

I made it to the set with an hour to spare, so I wandered around, unfortunately running into Alec.

"Masen."

"Alec." I nodded in acknowledgement. "How are you?"

"Peachy. How's Bella?" His question caught me off-guard.

"Good, I guess." I shrugged. I still didn't know what had gone on between them, but they clearly didn't end on good terms.

"You mean you don't know?" She and Emmett are back together. They were seen having a romantic dinner last night." My stomach immediately rolled, but then I remembered the dinner also included Renee, and perhaps someone else.

"They're friends. I can't stop them from having dinner."

"A leopard doesn't change its spots. It's a good thing I realized how she was before we got more involved," he chuckled darkly. "She's yours to deal with now." He walked away, happy that Bella had apparently left me too. I didn't bother trying to correct him. He'd made life hell for just about everyone on-set, especially me; so if this meant he'd be in a good mood, I wasn't going to stop him from thinking it.

I spent the next hour in makeup, followed by the staging and doing a fast line run-through. Once we started filming, it went fairly quickly. We were able to wrap up in a matter of hours, everyone riding high on our first successful day of filming. I was invited out by a few members of the cast and I still had a few hours before Bella's flight landed, so I accepted.

We headed to a local bar where people instantly went crazy with cameras and autographs. I saw a familiar blonde standing in the corner, for once in her life looking timid. I waved her over and made room for her to sit.

It still wasn't widely known that Tanya was my sister, and we tried hard to keep it that way, at first because of Ed Senior's reputation. Now that we were older, it didn't really matter as much. If people asked about the slight resemblance we were honest, but never made the information public. Tanya sitting with the small group of actors, with my arm wrapped around her, was enough to really start people talking.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I asked with a forced smile.

"Jasper told me where you'd be and I wanted to talk to you," she replied with an equally fake grin.

"I thought I told him to stay away from you, and how does he know where I am?"

"He was staying away. He finally answered his phone because I wouldn't stop calling to apologize. He's your best friend, but also your manager. It's his job to know where you are."

"Well that's great," I laughed. I felt a little guilty about the way I'd treated him this morning. He was still doing his job despite our barely being on speaking terms.

"We need to talk," she said quietly. I nodded and we excused ourselves as we got up from the table and made our way through the bar to a dark hallway near the back.

I told her the exact same thing I told Jasper about the lying and the sneaking around. That it hurt they felt they couldn't trust me. She apologized profusely, and as mad as I was at her for everything, we were family. I also told her to please leave me out of it.

We'd just made our way back to the table when I heard, "Masen, good to see you've moved on so quickly," Alec's voice carried above the bar chatter.

I quickly introduced Tanya to Alec, leaving out how we knew each other. Alec eyed Tanya up and down, and she did the same. It made me sick, but it was clear there was some instant connection, which was perfect.

I saw that I had an hour before Bella's flight came in and if I hit light traffic, I could easily be at the airport in time to pick them up.

"Well this has been pleasant, but I have somewhere to be right now. You two stay. Have a few drinks on me. I ordered them drinks and bolted, followed by a rash of people yelling and screaming my name. I prayed I would be able to grab a cab, but thankfully there was a studio car right outside. I asked the guy if he minded taking me to O'Hare and he gave me a strange look. After bribing him with a two-hundred bucks, we were best friends and on our way.

Once we reached the airport, I quickly deduced which flight she'd be on. I noticed a few people staring as I strolled through the concourse, so I ducked into a gift shop and bought a Cubs hat and sunglasses. I would look like an asshole for wearing them indoors, but I didn't care. Being there for Bella was far more important.

"Edward?"

"Alice? Hey! Nice hair!" I wasn't sure what else to say. The last time I saw her, it was really short, and now it was long. She didn't look bad, just...different.

"You like it?" She twirled around and laughed.

"Yeah, Alice, it's great to see you, but where's Bella?"

"She's coming. She was stopped by some of the flight crew who wanted pictures with her." Alice rolled her eyes. "It's good to see you here. She missed you." She stopped talking and then her eyes darted around.

"He's not here, Al," I assured her.

"Good." Her voice was solid but the way her shoulders fell told me everything I needed to know.

"Edward?" I turned and saw Bella with a shocked expression. "Oh my God, you were serious!" She laughed and dropped her bags, running over and giving me a tight hug. Having my arms wrapped around her suddenly made everything I'd been worried about disappear.

"Thank you for all the flowers. They were beautiful. I missed you," she whispered in my ear.

"Me too."

A peck on the lips soon became a full-blown make-out session. Suddenly, I heard Alice clear her throat.

"Hey guys, this is lovely and all, but unless you two want to be filmed making out by everyone and their mom, we should go."

We pulled away and grinned at each other. I looked over her head and saw we'd drawn quite a large audience, most with camera phones. I gave her the quick peck I'd originally intended and grabbed her bags. We headed out to the car on the corner where an even bigger group was waiting, these holding professional cameras.

The driver opened the door and Bella and I quickly climbed in. Alice paused. "Actually guys, I think I'm gonna cab it."

"Don't be stupid, Alice. Get in. The car will drop you off wherever you want," Bella insisted.

"I don't have a place to stay. I was staying with Jasper. Now-"

"Alice, please get in. We can figure this out because right now, the paps are trying to block us from leaving."

That was all the convincing it took. "Oh shit! Sorry!" She practically dove head-first into the backseat, landing on my lap.

I told the driver to head back to the hotel where Bella was a few nights ago. I assured Alice that she would be able to get a room there as well and she relaxed. There was a lot of tension in this car. The sexual tension between Bella and me was palpable, especially with the way she ran her nails up and down my leg, getting higher and higher to my zipper with each pass.

The tension between me and Alice was strange. I wasn't quite sure what to tell her. I felt bad, but I wasn't sure why. I didn't force Jasper and Tanya together, yet I was close to both of them, and therefore I could see how she would see me as being on their team, but if anything, I was on Team Bella.

Alice spoke quietly on the phone and made arrangements to get a last-minute room. I leaned over to Bella and whispered, "Is it wrong that I can't stop thinking about you naked and wrapped in sheets?"

"Is it wrong that I want you in my mouth as soon as we're alone?" she whispered back, scraping her teeth along my neck.

"I can hear you guys," Alice said loudly.

"Sorry," we said at the same time, clearly not meaning it. Bella giggled into my neck, causing me to shiver.

The rest of the ride was spent in silence. When we arrived at the hotel, we quickly made our way to the elevators while Alice checked into her own room.

Once we made it into the room, I threw her bags on the floor and was on her in less than a minute.

"The airport," she panted between kisses, "was the sexiest...the sweetest..." she moaned as I pushed her against a wall.

"Shouldn't we talk first?" I offered, biting her neck.

"We should talk more about the quickest way to get you inside me," she muttered, grabbing my ass and pulling me closer. I fumbled trying to undo her button-fly and her hands were shaking as she undid my belt and jeans.

She unzipped me and quickly shoved her hand down my boxers, grabbing hold of me. "Fuck!" I shouted as she let her nails trace underneath my balls, making me momentarily forget I was supposed to be getting her out of her pants too.

She grabbed my hands and moved them from her waist to her hair and fell to her knees, pulling my jeans and boxers down, and I felt immediate relief when her mouth enveloped me. I had to brace myself against the wall to keep my legs from buckling.

"Bella, oh Jesus!" I pounded the wall, the tingling sensations from her tongue flicking me and blowing cool air before deep-throating becoming almost unbearable

A familiar sensation started to spread through me and I shook my head, trying to will it away. I tried to pull back, only to have her forcefully grab my ass and pull more of me back into her mouth. All the nerves in my body were on high alert, anticipating her next move. I looked down to see if her eyes were open or closed. I thought seeing her eyes looking up at me would be erotic, but it was nothing compared to how hot it was that they were closed. She was clearly enjoying herself. I gripped her hair tighter, earning me a moan in return.

"Did you like that?" I rasped.

She nodded, so I did it again, spurring her on to move her mouth faster, until I came without much warning. Then she slowly pulled away as I came down off my high.

"That was..." I panted.

"Amazing? Spectacular?" she teased.

"Unbelievable. I love...that thing you do with your finger," I finished, catching myself before I made a fatal slip. I quickly pulled my pants up, tucking myself back into my boxers.

"I'm glad," she smiled. She began putting herself together, but when I moved to stop her, she shook her head in response. "That was only about you." She lightly kissed me and went over to her bags. I grabbed her arm and gently yanked her back to me, pulling her close, needing to feel her next to me.

"I really did miss you."

"I missed you too." Her voice was muffled but I felt her smiling into my shirt. She squeezed my hand and went back to her bags.

"So, talk now, I guess?"

She stiffened before nodding and continued unpacking.

"What happened with Renee?" I asked gently, rubbing her shoulders and urging her to sit down.

"Well, it all fell to shit when she introduced us to her new boyfriend and I got drunk a little too fast." She then continued to tell me how she'd put together the timeline of Renee's betrayal. I'd never met Charlie Swan, but I knew he was a well-respected man and Bella loved him with everything she had. It killed me that I hadn't been there for her. I internally kicked my own ass for being a selfish bastard when Bella was struggling to hold it together.

"So how did you leave it?" I asked.

"I told Phil he could do better and we left."

"That's it?"

"Well, I kicked her out of the penthouse and I'm surprised she hasn't called yet, but I'm sure she'll be contacting me when she learns I've frozen all but one of her accounts," she smirked.

"That's cold. Not that she doesn't deserve it, but damn."

"I'm done talking about this. How was your day, dear?" She wrapped her arms around me, pulling me in for a long kiss.

"Jasper and Tanya are driving me batshit insane, but nothing I can't handle."

"Ah, yes. I almost forgot about the fairytale of the whore and her frog prince finding their way back together," she said sarcastically.

Bella, that's not fair."

"I know," she sighed. "Jasper isn't a frog."

"You know what I mean."

"I'd love to hear the argument that your sister isn't a slut. By all means, plead her case." Bella crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me.

I didn't know what to say. First, I was stunned by the sudden change in attitude, and second, I had no way to defend Tanya's actions.

"I may not approve of what she's done, but she's family and I won't have you disrespect her."

"But you'll condone her disrespecting my relationship with Emmett and screwing around with your best friend and ruining another relationship?"

"I didn't know about your fucked-up arrangement with Emmett until after we met, and when I did find out, I was embarrassed and appalled by her behavior. Am I okay with what happened between her and Jasper? Absolutely not, but I won't have you call her names when she isn't here to defend herself."

"Well then, why don't we call her and have her come down? Maybe Alice do it since Tanya has been pestering her. Clearly she wants to be heard, so go ahead, Edward. Call her," she dared.

"She's been calling Alice?" I asked, not bothering to hide my shock.

"Calling, texting, and I'd be surprised if she hasn't started emailing her."

"What do you want me to do, Bella? We've told everyone we're staying out of it. Wouldn't calling Tanya be interfering?"

"It is, but-I don't know," she sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I just hate to see Alice so upset. I find it ironic that they were an instant couple and we're the two people I thought would never get their shit together, and now we're just beginning and they're ending."

I crouched down in front of her, catching her eye and giving her a small smile. "Why don't we just focus on each other? You and I have enough to deal with, and we don't need any additional pressure. No more arguing about things out of our control."

"I think I can do that." I sighed in relief, glad she didn't notice I'd changed the subject.

"Good." I kissed the back of her palm and slowly made her lean back on the bed. I covered her body and kissed her long and slow, needing to feel connected to her after having so much dissention between us. We moved to the middle of the bed, knocking her suitcase to the floor. I crawled back between her legs, lying on top of her, and shifted my weight so we were able to take things at a slower pace. Sharing soft, deep kisses, we simply held each other, and I hoped she could feel my silent attempts to reassure her I wasn't going anywhere.

The kisses quickly grew more passionate and frenzied, and I could feel the intensity return as she hitched her leg over my waist and moaned when she ran her hand over my crotch and felt how hard I was. I grabbed her ass and pulled her as close as we could be with clothes on.

"You need to take these off," she murmured against my mouth, pulling on the top button of my jeans I sincerely hoped that being with Bella meant both of us would be wearing pants less often.

"You too." I popped her jeans open with a quick wrist-flick and eased my hand in, feeling the heat coming off her body. She arched her back and gasped as the heel of my palm made contact right above her clit.

"Please, Edward." I kissed her deeply and slid my fingers into her.

"Is that what you wanted?" I whispered in her ear, biting her lobe before scraping my teeth down her neck.

"I want," she sucked in a deep breath, "I want you in me."

I ground against her leg. "But I am in you," I teased.

"Fuck me."

Very soon our clothes were off and she pushed my shoulders down and swung her leg over me so that we were touching skin-to-skin, everywhere, or at least everywhere that mattered.

She grabbed me firmly, flashing an evil smile and very slowly teased me, running herself up and down over my cock before guiding me in.

In that moment, almost any coherent thoughts left. The look on her face, her head thrown back and lips parted, it was as if time slowed down. Until she began moving.

I grabbed her hips and slowly moved her back and forth. She quickened the pace, going faster and faster, reaching back and grabbing my legs for leverage, allowing me to go deeper.

"Bella," I said, needing her to look at me. I needed a connection. I needed to see something from her that she felt on some level about me the way I did about her.

She slowly opened her eyes. Lust and passion were evident, but what stood out to me was the tenderness. My heart grew when I thought that she could love me, and securing that emotional connection spurred the physical intensity even more.

"Please, baby, I'm close," I choked.

"Me too." I moved my hands from her hips and forcefully grabbed her ass, causing her to fall forward and thrust against me with more force and friction. Only a few seconds later she squeezed her eyes shut and kissed me as she came. I followed suit, coming harder than I had in a long time.

"That was-" I was cut off by two short knocks on the door.

"Bella? Are you guys busy?" Alice called.

"Yes!" We both shouted.

"Sorry!" She yelled back. A few moments later we heard a door down the hallway slam shut.

Bella giggled and buried her head in my neck. I maneuvered us under the covers and we quickly salvaged the bubble that Alice had almost burst. Neither of us said anything, but nothing needed to be said that couldn't be voiced later. I had Bella, naked and curled up in my arms. Her breathing slowly evened out and she fell asleep right before I did.

Bella Swan

I woke up and glanced over at the clock. It was only three in the morning. I could feel Edward stretched out next to me, his arm gently wrapped around my waist. I didn't bother trying to hide my giddiness and was suddenly wide awake, wanting to tell someone, anyone about the two of us.

I tried slipping out of his grasp, only to have him mutter "mine," and pull me tighter to his body. I kissed his cheek and whispered that I would be right back. His grip loosened and I slid out of bed and made my way to the bathroom.

I had just come out when I heard loud noises coming from the hall. I briefly debated poking my head out or going back to bed, but the noises were getting closer to my room and I distinctly heard my name being mentioned.

Looking back over my shoulder, I saw Edward softly snoring, his lower half covered by the bed sheet, leaving his chest exposed, then looked back at the door. It was three in the morning. Surely whatever was happening in the hall could wait until the sun was up.

I was halfway back to the bed when there was a loud pounding on our door, making Edward jump out of bed looking frantic. "What's going on?" he shouted, his voice raspy.

"No idea." I shrugged.

"I can hear you guys. I know you're up now," a male voice yelled.

I looked at Edward, "is that-?"

"Jasper," he finished. "One second!" he yelled. He pulled on his jeans and I noticed he'd gone commando. Nice.

"I was just coming back to bed. We turned away Alice, so why can't do the same to him?" I leaned against the door and ran my nails down his chest, enjoying the way his muscles tightened under my touch.

He sucked in a breath and exhaled, "I promise this'll be quick. I'll get rid of him and then we'll have the whole day to spend in here, alone." He leaned forward and kissed me.

"Okay."

"Thanks." He gave me another quick peck and opened the door.

"It's about time." Jasper brushed past Edward and sat on the sofa in the entryway. "Bella, you have to get her to talk to me." I took a moment to take in Jasper's appearance. For lack of a better term, he looked like shit. He had dark circles and bags under bloodshot eyes. His clothes were wrinkled as if he'd been sleeping in them. He looked exhausted and hung over, and for a brief moment, I felt bad for him.

"I don't have to do anything." I folded my arms and stared at him. So much for this being "quick."

"You look like hell." Edward came to stand behind me, wrapping his arms around me and placing a kiss on the top of my head. I loved the feel of his body so close to mine. I closed my eyes, leaned into his chest and sighed.

"You'll excuse me. That's what sleeping in a hallway does to you. I looked at Jasper and all my patience was gone.

"You're the one barging in our room at three-thirty in the morning You're lucky I haven't kicked your ass out yet."

"Please," he begged, "get her to talk to me, or at least listen to me. I can explain everything and clear it all up if she'd just give me five minutes."

"Right." I rolled my eyes. "I'd love to hear you explain away how or why you and the Wonder Whore were pressed up against a wall."

"Bella!" Edward snapped. He looked pissed. No, more than that, he was downright furious. It was hot.

"What?" I shrugged. Edward opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by another knock at the door.

"Christ on a fucking cracker, I can only guess who that is," Edward muttered as he made his way to the door. "Alice, please come in," he said, waving her through with an overdramatic arm gesture.

"What the fuck, Bella? You let him in, but not me?" She crossed her arms and her eyes filled with tears.

"Get over yourself, Alice." Edward said, returning to his position behind me.

"What?"

"What Edward means," I tossed him a brief glare before continuing, "is that Jasper was just leaving and when you came by earlier, we were busy." I gave her a look, hoping she'd get it.

"Well you aren't busy now, are you?"

"If you're asking if my dick is currently inside her, then no, we aren't busy," Edward answered. The look on her face made me want to laugh, but I knew this wasn't the time for it, so I bit my lip. That shit hurt., No wonder I didn't do it more often.

"That still doesn't explain why his cheating ass is on your couch right now." Alice was staring down at the carpet.

"If you'd just let me tell you what happened, I swear it wasn't what it looked like. I didn't just sleep outside your room all night for shits and giggles," Jasper protested, running his hand through his hair. "Bella, please make her understand."

"Nobody made you sleep in the hallway. I'm sure Tanya has plenty of room in her bed," Alice spat. She turned to face Edward, "Get your sister to leave me the fuck alone. I have too many contacts and information stored to change my number, or I would have done it three days ago."

"Whoa." I held up my hand. "We," I motioning between Edward and me, "are Switzerland." Edward nodded. "I hate to see you two hurting, and Ali, I will do everything in my power to make you feel better and get your mind off things, but don't you dare drag either of us into your drama. This includes the Wonder-Tanya."

"Alice, I'll ask Tanya to back off, but ultimately it's between you three. You," he turned to Jasper, "and I have some shit we need to discuss, but now is not the time. It's a little after four in the fucking morning and I really want to get some sleep because I don't have a call time today. Now is the time when everyone says they're sorry, again, and you all leave." Edward went to the door and opened it, patiently waiting for them to walk through it.

I gave Alice a brief hug and whispered that we would have lunch later in the day to form a game plan and made a mental note to ask Edward to come with me so it wouldn't turn into a Jasper bitch-fest. As they left, Alice brushed past Jasper and darted in the direction of her room.

"Tell her I think she looks great with long hair."

"She looked great with short hair too," I insisted. With that, he nodded and shuffled out of our room, his head down, shoulders slumped in defeat.

Finally, we were alone and wide-awake, and I wasn't entirely sure about Edward, but I was mentally exhausted from the little soap opera.

Sex was the last thing on my mind.

Edward Masen

"Those two are going to kill each other soon if they don't talk. Alice looks like she's still ready to strangle him." I made my way to the bed, unbuttoning my jeans as I went. I was too tired for sex at this point, but that didn't mean I didn't want Bella next to me.

"Jasper is going to need protection from more than just Alice. He's really starting to annoy the shit out of me," she said. At least that's what I think she said. After the word protection, my brain started working overtime.

What we'd done earlier had felt good.

Too good.

Fucking fantastic.

We hadn't used a condom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... what'dya you think?
> 
> I usually offer bribes, so here are your options as an appreciation for a review AND tomorrow, the 13th is my birthday...so please review?
> 
> The Renee POV of the dinner.
> 
> The Emmett POV of how the deal first started
> 
> A teaser of the next chapter which is almost done. Three more chapters and then the ep! Can you believe it?
> 
> Rec's:
> 
> I love these stories so much. Please give them a chance.
> 
> A Woman Scorned by Bella Baby 24
> 
> Ugly by Silver_Sniper_Of_Night
> 
> Torn by bella c'ella luna


	26. It's Just Three Little Words

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just Three Little Words
> 
> Thanks to Irritable_Grizzzly who beta'd this bad boy TWICE! TWICE we went through this chapter. Also, this chapter is dedicated to IdPattThat because she's awesome and when writing this, for some reason I couldn't stop thinking about her. When you're done with this chapter, go read her story, Secrets, Lies and Famiy Ties.
> 
> Finally, I am not SM. My bank account is not even a fraction of hers, so all intellectual (and I use that term loosely) property is hers. This story/plot/ideas are mine, so let's not steal. It's just not very nice.

Edward Masen

"Dad!" Jack yelled as he came charging through the front door.

"In here!"

"Don't slam-" the door swung shut, rattling the windows, "the door," I finished. It didn't matter how many times I told him to be careful, he never listened. Then again, when I was six, I wasn't all that great about listening to my parents either.

"Dad," he whined, coming into my office, "those people with the cameras followed me and Smashley from school again. Why won't they leave me alone?" He flopped into the chair next to my desk.

"Smashley? That's a new one," I laughed at his new nickname for her. It was a constant game of theirs, seeing who could come up with the sillier name.

"Like The Hulk, dad." He rolled his eyes. "She likes it." He crossed his arms and tilted his chin up.

"Of course she likes it. Because you came up with it and you're awesome," Bella said, coming into the room. She leaned down and kissed him soundly on the cheek.

"Ewww, mo-om," Jack complained, rubbing his cheek to get Bella's lipstick off.

"Dude, you gotta stop slamming the front door." She looked around briefly before asking, "Where's Ashley?"

"She's outside trying to get the camera people to leave me alone," he huffed. Even at a young age, he was displaying so many traits that were a perfect blend of Bella and me. He had my patience, but it was only when he would cool down after showing his temper, which he clearly got from his mother.

"That girl needs a raise or she's going to leave us," I muttered.

"Oh please, she loves Jack, not to mention she's constantly checking out your ass," she laughed.

"Oooh, mom gets to put a dollar in the swear jar," Jack teased.

"I'll go help her out. Edward, are you coming?" She raised an eyebrow and waited for an answer, tapping her left hand against the doorjamb, the diamond from her ring catching the light.

"Edward...hello?"

"Edward!"

I shot out of bed, wondering where the hell I was. It took a moment for me to remember I was in Bella's suite, we were in Chicago, and I definitely did not have a kid named Jack, or anything else for that matter.

"Are you all right?"

I took a deep breath and nodded. I wasn't sure if my dream was meant to be prophetic or wishful thinking. Even though Bella had assured me she was on birth control, I still felt that maybe "Plan B" should have been "Plan A."

"So who's Ashley?"

"Huh?"

"Ashley. You were saying the name in your sleep just now." I glanced over and saw Bella looking a little uneasy.

"Nobody, don't worry about it, I was just having a weird dream." I leaned forward and kissed her temple,. I then looked at the clock behind her and saw we'd only been asleep a few hours since Jasper and Alice had left the room.

"You okay?"

Bella still had a small frown on her face, but nodded. "I guess we should get moving. I'm gonna go shower., wWould you please order room service? Lots of coffee." She slid out of bed, taking the sheet with her. Something wasn't right., hHer mood had shifted dramatically and I couldn't figure out the reason for the change.

While Bella was in the shower, I did as she requested. Then I paced back and forth. Something wasn't right, and until I could figure out what was wrong, I couldn't fix it.

I was starting to grow frustrated and somewhat irritated. Bella had never had an issue telling me what was on her mind before, so why now? At the same time I heard the shower turn off, there was a knocking at the door.

I took the cart from the guy in the hallway, not letting the employee see the suite. The last thing I wanted to deal with was the headline, "Edward Masen and Bella Swan's Secret Sex Den" or something equally asinine.

"Oh thank God," I heard Bella comment when she saw me pushing the cart.

"Is that meant for me or the coffee?" I teased. She was still in the bathroom, but had the door open and was pulling her hair up in a knot, wearing a white hotel robe.

"Coffee. Definitely the coffee and food."

I quickly removed all the lids and we both fixed ourselves plates with fruit, waffles and bacon. After we settled into the chairs on the balcony, we ate in silence for what seemed like ages.

"You know, in the sun, your hair is a mahogany color?" I offered, trying to break the quiet.

"You didn't just compare my hair to Ethan Allen furniture," she snorted.

"Would you rather I tell you that your skin reminded me of white Italian marble?"

"Uh, no."

"You would tell me if there was something wrong, wouldn't you?" I asked quietly, taking a sip of my coffee.

She looked confused for a moment and nodded,. She swallowed her food, and asked, "You would tell me if you were interested in seeing someone else, wouldn't you?"

"But I'm not."

"Would you?"

"Of course, but I'm not interested in anyone but you. I thought that was fairly obvious."

"You're right. Sorry."

"Is that why you're so quiet? Are you having doubts about us; about me?" My heart pounded harder in my chest when I thought of her rejecting me. I'd been so certain about how she felt, but could I have been wrong?

"What! No, I'm not having doubts." She shook her head. "Just, after this morning, when you said another woman's name in your sleep, I couldn't help but let my imagination wander."

She briefly reminded me of my dream, but I could barely remember anything. It had almost completely faded from my consciousness.

"I swear, it was just a dream. You," I said, leaning across the table and grabbing her hand to emphasize my point, "are the one I want, okay?"

"Okay. You know the same goes for you, right?"

"Good to know." I squeezed her hand again for good measure and we both finished our breakfast in silence. I didn't miss the small smile that never faded, and I'm sure mine didn't either.

After we cleaned up the balcony and headed inside, I heard Bella's phone and the ringtone made me laugh.

"Sorry, I thought I turned it off," she sighed.

"You're not going to answer it?" She turned the ringer off and threw it on the bed.

"Not a chance."

"It could be important."

"Nothing she says could be so dire to interrupt us right now."

"It's your mother..." my voice trailed off.

"Really?" She put her hands on my chest and looked me in the eyes. "Her ringtone is the "Wicked Witch of the West." She doesn't exactly hold the highest priority for me, especially right now." She slipped one hand under my shirt and traced the outline of my muscles with her nails.

"Am I a priority?"

She stood on her toes and pressed her mouth to mine, answering my question. Wrapping my arms around her, I pulled her close to my body and backed us toward the bed. When the back of my legs hit the mattress, I sat down on the edge and slowly pulled her robe open and slipped it off her shoulders.

Bella Swan

The heat of his hands as he grabbed me and pulled me closer sent tingles down my spine. The cool air hit my body as the robe fell away, which caused my nipples to harden and I instantly got goosebumps. Edward noticed my reaction and took my right nipple into his mouth, sucking gently while flicking it with his tongue. His hand slowly moved over my torso and firmly massaged the other.

I threw my head back and moaned. The sensations of being licked, touched, and worshipped was not something I'd ever been accustomed to. I gently pushed him back onto the bed, straddling his lap.

I reached between us and slowly stroked him with a firm grip, eliciting a deep moan and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. "Fuck, that feels good."

"That's the point." I grinned and rubbed myself against him. I grabbed the bottom of his shirt and quickly pulled it over his head and pushed him down so he was on his back, then slowly worked his boxers off, and I couldn't help but giggle as he kicked his legs with a never-before-seen sense of urgency.

"You think that's funny?"

"A little bit, yeah."

"The only thing that's laughable is how you'll be walking when I'm done with you."

"Oh really?" I rubbed my hands over his chest, his shoulders, and then his arms, taking his hands and placing them on my waist.

He pulled me forward so that I was straddling his chest, then lifted his head and blew warm air on my clit. Realization struck me. He wanted to do that? I was only used to it on special occasions, like my birthday. I wasn't prepared, and I just couldn't, at least not in this position.

"Hey." He softly pinched my side, "Where'd you go?" He grabbed my hips and continued to pull me closer to his face.

"No." I shook my head.

"No?" He looked shocked, as he should have.

"Not like this, please," I said in a softer tone. Before he could say anything else, I unwrapped my legs and laid myself parallel to him.

Then I hitched my leg over his hip and pulled him close for a deep kiss, the ridge of the head teasing me.

When he felt the contact, he let out a shaky breath, "Is this okay?" he asked, and I nodded in response.

Then it happened. Edward and I had kissed plenty of times since we'd first met; more than I could count, but this time it was different. The tenderness, the sensitivity, the passion; all of it together resonated something deep in me. For my entire marriage, I wanted to feel this with Emmett. For the longest time, I'd tried desperately to awaken the depth of emotion stirring within me right now, but nothing had ever come close to this. I had what could only be called an epiphany.

This was it for me. He was it. This was what I'd wanted and thought I would never have. I had someone to love, and I knew he felt the same. I could feel the tears start to form, so I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping they'd go away and not ruin the moment.

"Please," he murmured against my lips. Without answering I angled him toward me and slowly slid down onto him until I couldn't go any further. My breathing shortened as he began to move, his hipbone against mine. The sensations, coupled with my emotions, were almost too much to bear. Almost.

"More," I pleaded.

"God, yes." He complied, his hips meeting mine faster and with more force. He began sucking my neck as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, grabbing his hair and whispering that I was close, and he grunted that he was too.

Electricity shot through me, to every end-point in my body. I squeezed my eyes shut, not to hide the tears, but because the sheer force of everything combined was too much. Edward moaned and moved quicker, and I could feel his whole body tense as he shuddered his release.

A thin layer of sweat covered us and I shivered when the air conditioning kicked in. After quickly cleaning myself up, I slid under the sheets and curled into him the same way we had the night before. This time, though, I didn't want to sleep, I wanted to tell him how I felt, and that I was finally ready to completely open myself to him; to be his and let him be mine.

"What are you thinking?" he asked, breaking the silence. He ran his fingertips down the back of my arm again, tracing patterns as he went.

"Nothing," I lied.

"Liar."

"You're probably right. What are you thinking about?"

"I'm thinking that you are amazing."

"Lame."

"Doesn't make me a liar though. What's on your mind?"

"I was just thinking…" I knew this was my moment, but I froze. Could I tell him how I felt and not make it sound like something that was the result of a post-coital-induced haze? Now was not the time, but there would be other chances. If he wound up saying something first, I wouldn't hesitate to let him know. "I was thinking that we're naturals and should be doing this a lot more often."

"You only want me for my body, you can admit it, Swan," he chuckled.

"I have no complaints about your body, or the rest of you for that matter." I snuggled further into his side and kissed his chest.

"I have to say, I have the same sentiments about you."

"Just say it, you love me." The words were out of my mouth before I could stop myself. His fingers stopped moving, and his chest stilled as well. I could hear his heart pounding.

"What if I do?" he asked softly. My stomach turned. Knowing something in theory and actually hearing the words were two completely different things.

"I would have to say that like your body, the feeling is mutual."

"Look at me," he said, his voice a little louder. I did as he asked, my chin resting in the middle of his sternum. I gave him a small smile and waited for him to continue.

He took a deep breath and I shifted to move off of him, but he kept me still. "I meant it when I told you there was nobody else I wanted, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. When you were gone, it didn't fucking matter that it was only three days, I missed you more than I've ever missed anyone."

"I missed-" he stopped me by putting his finger to my mouth.

"This is my moment, just like you see in the movies or read in those stupid romance novels, so hang on and let me get through this, please?"

I kissed his finger and nodded.

"The fact that we've been through bullshit situations so many times, and here you are, naked with me, choosing to be with me, goes to show that we're good together and not just physically." He took a deep breath. "I love you, Bella, more than I probably should given our history, but I do. I can only hope that I don't epically fuck this up."

I lay there, speechless and closed my eyes, sighing, wishing I could find the words to tell him.

"Bella, please say something." I opened my eyes to see a very nervous-looking Edward Masen. I wasn't used to this. I was used to cool, confident, smooth Edward who could sometimes be a jerk. This nervousness was unsettling.

"I don't have any flowery speeches prepared, and I'm not an actor, so I can't just wing it like you can. I'll just lay it out for you in my own way." I paused. "I know that when I'm with you, I'm happier than I can ever remember being. I want you. I want you to know things about me that nobody else does. I missed you while I was gone, enough to know that unless you tell me to go, you're stuck with me. That I put up with your bullshit and you put up with mine, should be a testament to how much I care about you."

"Say the words, Bella. Please."

I linked my right hand with his left and leaned forward so that we were touching nose-to-nose. "I love you." He took his hand and slid it to the base of my neck, pulling me closer, sucking on my bottom lip while he rolled us over so our positions were switched.

I ground myself against him, but he laughed and shook his head. "I'm not seventeen, Bella. I need more time to recover than just a few minutes."

"You mean it's not a super-fantastic-wondercock?"

He glanced down between us. "No. Right now it's only super-fantastic."

"Oh my god. I'm in love with an egomaniac," I laughed, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"Say that again."

"Egomaniac."

"Try again." He dragged his fingers down my side, tickling me as he went.

"I love you."

"I know." He smiled and my heart fluttered. I kissed him gently before looking at the clock, instantly wishing I hadn't. We'd slept in too late and it was almost noon. Knowing Alice's knack for details, she would remember my promise of an early lunch and be knocking on our door soon enough.

The last thing I wanted was to pop our little bubble, but it was only a matter of time before the real world came crashing down on us anyway. Just then, my phone started ringing, as did the hotel phone. There were only two people who knew we were in this room.

Edward sighed and rested his head on my shoulder. "I knew that we'd have to be social, but I was hoping to have more time with you." He rolled off me and threw his arms back to stretch. I couldn't help but admire the way his muscles flexed. Hs long and lean body was for my eyes only. Then he propped his head on his hand and smiled at me.

"What?"

"You're pretty."

"So are you."

"You want to know something else?" he whispered, patting the mattress. I crawled next to him and waited. "You love me."

"I already knew that." I tried not to let the disappointment show, but it was now three mentions of my affections to his one, and I hated that I was being childish, but I was already questioning his sincerity.

"You're being cocky and while I normally find you charming, right now I don't feel that way." I couldn't help but let out a frustrated sigh. "Forget it. I'm being a girl about this. I need to get ready for the day." I tried to pull my hand away, but Edward tightened his grip.

"I refuse to let you go until you explain what's going on."

So I told him about my insecurities and how stupid I was being and how I felt bad for instantly ruining the mood. He listened to everything I had to say.

When I finished, he was quiet for a moment and then finally said, "I need you to understand something about me. I rarely put myself in a vulnerable position because of what I do for a living, so for me to open up to someone is rare. I've never had anyone say they love me before, so forgive me if I seem cocky, as you say. I don't mean to be, you just make me that happy."

Well, fuck. Now I felt incredibly stupid, but how was I supposed to know?

He sat up and slid his hands into my hair. "Stop thinking. Whatever's running through your head, just stop. Both of us have a lot going on, so let's just enjoy this, okay? I love you. God I love you so much, so stop over-thinking, please." He leaned forward and kissed me, long and deep.

I nodded, unable to find the words to describe how good we were. Edward was right. I needed to stop the unnecessary worrying and thoughts of doubt. We were good together and we were happy. That's all that mattered.

"I need to take a shower." I loved the idea of being dirty because of Edward, but that didn't mean I wanted to stay that way.

"Me too. You go first though. The bedroom might be big, but that bathroom is tiny."

By the time I was dressed and ready, Alice was sitting in a chair and Edward was dressed, sitting on the edge of the bed, looking uncomfortable.

"I don't know, Alice. I think it's stupid and I really don't see the point," he said, shaking his head.

"Just wait until the movie comes out, and then you guys can go public. It'll garner more publicity," she stated emphatically. From a business standpoint, I agreed with her, but on a personal level, I was annoyed, and based on Edward's clenched jaw, he was too.

"You do remember that I fired Irina for wanting to do the same thing?"

I interjected. "Why don't we do this? Edward and I will continue to go out and do the usual couple things. If people take pictures, fine, we can't stop them from doing that, but it won't be official until the movie wraps," I suggested.

"I guess that could work," Alice said slowly.

"I don't like it, but it's better than hiding," Edward agreed.

"Oh, by the way, Tyler called twice. You weren't returning phone calls for whatever reason." Edward rolled his eyes and smiled. "Alec is in full diva mode right now and he can't deal with him. He needs your help."

"Fine," I sighed. "We're still getting lunch first, right? I'm starving." I slipped on my shoes and grabbed my purse.

"I'd be insulted if you weren't," Edward chided\\.

Alice muttered something under her breath and I could only guess that it wasn't positive.

"I'll call you when I leave the set." I leaned down to kiss him goodbye when he pulled me into his lap.

"You smell good," he whispered, and I couldn't help but giggle. I was a little embarrassed by my childish behavior, but at least I didn't blush.

"You smell like sex," I whispered back.

"So do you." He gave me a brief squeeze, whispered that he loved me, and let me go.

"You guys are disgustingly cute together," Alice said, spearing a piece of her lettuce.

I'd promised myself I'd take Edward to this lunch meeting, but he had to meet with Jasper and I figured it wasn't fair to subject him to this.

"I can't help it. He makes me happy."

"It's been a while since I've seen you this happy with someone." She quickly squeezed my hand.

"I know. I just realized today that I was only content with Emmett. We had happy times together, but I never achieved true happiness with him."

"Exactly. I might be miserable right now, but I'm not blind. I'm happy for you, I promise." She gave me a genuine smile.

"I hate to bring this up, but I need to ask a favor."

"Of course, anything, you know that."

"Please talk to Jasper," I pleaded.

"Except that." She sat back and folded her arms, refusing to look at me.

"Just hear me out. You need to talk to him to get closure, if nothing else. I'm not saying you need forgive him, but the least you can do is hear him out and if you don't like what he has to say, tell him to fuck off."

"I don't know if I'm ready."

"Will there ever be a good time to talk to your ex-boyfriend about why he was making out with another chick against a wall? Probably not. Worst-case scenario is that you guys stay broken up, so things stay status quo."

"What do you think the best-case scenario would be?" For a split-second she looked hopeful, as if I had the magic answer. That wasn't going to happen, and as much as I wanted to give her my true opinion, I had promised to stay out of it. Whatever would ultimately happen was up to them. I wanted her to make her own choice.

"I think you should do whatever will make you the happiest. If that means staying away from Jasper, then great. If it means trying to work on building your trust with him, that's great too."

"That's a cop-out answer and you know it."

"It is," I admitted. "I just don't want my feelings about him to influence your decision. All I want is for you to be happy."

"I don't know what to do. I want to hear what he has to say, but whenever I think about returning his phone call or seeing him, all I can picture is him kissing Tanya and it makes me sick." I think she turned a little green.

"Been there, done that," I muttered. "Look, I know it makes you upset, but the sooner you talk to him, the sooner he'll stop calling and you guys can be done," I offered. At the mention of them never speaking, her eyes teared over.

"I don't know what's worse; never talking to him again or being with him and not being able to trust him."

"Talk to him. It might make your decision easier," I pressed.

"Or harder."

"Knock it off." My voice a bit harsher than I intended.

"Knock what off, Bella? I want your opinion, but you won't give it to me. How can I make a decision if you won't tell me what you know?"

"I know absolutely nothing."

"You do know something about Jasper and Tanya, and you aren't telling me what it is.

"You're delusional."

"Fine, then tell me your opinion."

I dropped my fork, letting it clatter loudly onto the table. "You want my opinion? Fine I'll give it to you. Stop wallowing and feeling sorry for yourself. It absolutely sucks that he kissed someone else and hid a relationship, but someone who wasn't desperate to things right and didn't care about you, wouldn't have slept in the hallway all night.

"You need to act your age, not your shoe size. You don't want to talk to him, fine. Change your number and stop crying over it. You have a problem, and you have all the tools to fix it, you're just choosing to feel sorry for yourself instead."

"But-"

I held up my hand. "I'm not done. I told you I would be there for you, to help you get over what happened, but until you decide you want to do something about your problem, don't come whining to me about it. Once you make a decision, I will fully support you, but until then, only you can decide what's best for you."

"Fine," she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'll talk to him."

"I think it'll be good for both of you to move past this," I said, softening my tone. "I'm sorry I yelled."

"No, you're right. I should talk to him. I have a lot of questions I want answered anyway. I'm just not looking forward to hearing a play-by-play of what happened."

We spent the rest of lunch talking about what she'd like to say versus what she should say, and helping her sort out her feelings. I also told her that Edward and I exchanged "I love yous" and she squealed that it was about time so loud it seemed the entire restaurant stared at us. I left out my insecure moment and decided to just enjoy that there was a wonderful man who returned my feelings with no strings attached.

With Emmett, it felt like there was always something. Something I could do better or say a little louder. Be more politically correct. For the most part, he cared about me just the way I was, and we thumbed our noses at what was expected, but this was different because Edward didn't ask anything of me, or expect me to be anyone else. More importantly, he didn't want anyone else, and for the first time in a long time, I truly felt like I was enough.

Edward Masen

After they left, I did a victory lap around the suite. Then I took a deep breath and gathered myself.

I took a long shower, enjoying the lingering scent of Bella's perfume as the steam took over. Various moments from this morning replayed in my mind like YouTube clips . I did feel a little bad about how I'd acted like a prick and made her insecure, but I hoped my explanation cleared things up.

I truly appreciated her and an idea began to take form of doing something to show her how much. I'd made light of my track record of doing or saying the wrong things, but I was very serious. Now that I had her, the last thing I'd ever want to do is push her away.

I came up with several ideas. My first instinct was to call Jasper to help me. My second thought was to ask Tanya, but considering I wasn't thrilled with either one of them, it left me with very little options. This depressed me. I was disappointed in both of them, but also with myself.

The air needed to be cleared. I needed to talk with both of them. Since my first thought was of Jasper, I called him first. He was more than willing to meet with me. I finished getting ready and headed out to meet with him.

The moment I stepped off the elevator, I remembered that I didn't have a car. I tried my best to ignore the stares and whispers as I strolled through the lobby. The doorman tried to hail a cab for me, but it seemed today was the day when all taxis decided to disappear. I spent at least ten minutes signing autographs and taking pictures with fans, which was never a problem, but it made me realize I'd been spoiled by my celebrity. I suppose today was the day of many realizations.

By the time a cab had been flagged, a large group had gathered, including a few photographers. I ignored their questions about who I'd visited, leaving them to their speculations as I got in the cab and gave him the address. The last thing I wanted was to be late and have him assume I'd changed my mind.

When I walked in, I didn't even have to think twice about where Jasper would be sitting. He knew how I valued my privacy. I headed straight for the back. He looked nervous and had shredded his napkin all over the floor. He was clearly feeling the same way I was. It didn't matter how long we'd been friends, we were both in the wrong. I wasn't going to make this a pissing match about who had more to apologize for, so I was willing to swallow my pride and listen to him now, and I would do my best not to get angry.

"Jasper."

"Edward. Good to see you."

I slid into the booth across from him. In record time, a waitress appeared at our table, leaning forward, her tits hanging out as she introduced herself as Bree and asked for our drink orders. We both avoided looking at her. When Bree returned with our drinks, we placed our orders. I called her name as she started to walk away.

She smiled wide and giggled, twirling her hair. "I need you to do me a huge favor, okay?"

"Absolutely," she giggled. She was almost as annoying as the girl from In'n'Out.

"That's great, Bree. Here's what I need you to do. I'm having a very important meeting with my business manager here and we need to be left alone. I'm sure you'll do your best to make sure that everything will be perfect and you won't need to check on us, am I right?"

She frowned and nodded. I had a feeling I was being a little condescending, but the games that I once found enticing no longer held their appeal.

"Thanks," Jasper chimed in. "All I ask is that you keep the drinks coming and we'll make it worth your while." Suddenly the giggles were back and she bounced off to the kitchen.

When I was certain she was out of earshot, I started with an apology for the way things went this morning, but defended our stance on why Bella and I were staying neutral. I did tell him that Bella was having lunch with Alice and she was most likely at the receiving end of a similar speech.

"I understand why you're staying neutral." He sighed. "I want to clear the air about me and Tanya. I get why you're pissed at us. I didn't expect you to find out this way. We felt like we had a good reason at the time to hide it from you, and then it didn't matter because it was no longer an issue. I'm sorry we lied. I know that must have been what hurt the most."

"Yeah, it did, but I'll get over it eventually." I looked at his miserable face. "So how are you doing?"

"Is it stupid that I miss her already?" Jasper asked.

"No, but I think you're gonna have to start thinking about moving on." Jasper's eyes shot up and he gave me a worried look.

"What do you know?"

"I don't know anything. I'm just giving you my opinion." I shrugged, hoping I hadn't just broken the Switzerland agreement.

"I can't even think about anyone else. Dude, I want to fucking marry the girl. It's been less than a week since she ended things. I can fix this if she'd just fucking talk to me!"

"I have a good feeling she'll be calling you. I just don't want you to get your hopes up if she tells you to leave her alone."

"Why would she do that? We're good together. She knows that," he tried to convince himself.

"Think about it though. Why do you want to talk to Alice so badly? What would it accomplish besides making you feel better? Really think about it, man."

"I want to tell her why I was meeting with Tanya that day. I want to tell her that I never meant for any of this to happen. I want to tell her that I'll do anything she wants to make it up to her." He looked so desperate, something I'd never seen before. "I never thought I'd find someone like her and I fucked it up. For once I did everything by the book; I was faithful, honest, attentive, and I know I made her happy. God I sound like a fucking chick but if nothing else, I want her to know that I love her and it doesn't matter what she wants to do with us, I always will."

Wow. I wasn't sure what to say. I was completely caught off-guard.

"Yeah, you do sound like a girl."

"Fuck you," he chuckled. "I know I screwed this up, but I can make this right if she gives me the chance."

"I believe you, but just be prepared."

"Yeah, I know, he sighed." He looked at his watch. "Oh, I almost forgot. We have to go to the set."

"Why? I'm not scheduled."

"Yeah, but I got a call earlier and there are some rewrites. According to your contract, you get final say on all edits. I emailed you, but I guess you didn't get it."

He thew his napkin on the table and signaled Bree over. We quickly paid, leaving her a large tip, and left behind the receipt with her number and little hearts on it.

We got into Jasper's rental and headed downtown.

When we got to the set, we split up. Jasper wanted to talk to one of the producers, and I went in search of Bella. I spotted her standing by the craft table talking to Tyler and Alec. Judging by the way they were laughing, there was absolutely no tension between them.

One of the screenwriters approached me, handing me the new script pages and giving me a rundown on what the changes were. I glanced over and caught Bella's eye. She flashed a grin and waved briefly before returning to her conversation.

Alec turned around to see who she'd been waving to and his smile was instantly gone when he saw me. He turned back and nodded at something Tyler said, and then he obviously said something, because suddenly Bella went from friendly to downright frightening. She punctuated her words by poking her finger into his chest. I pretended to ignore the confrontation, but when I heard a resounding crack, I excused myself and headed in their direction.

I saw Alec rubbing his face, looking shocked, and Bella shaking out her hand. "Are you okay?" I said, approaching them.

"I'm fine. We're almost done here." She turned back to Alec. "If you ever refer to anyone I care about that way again, so help me, I can and will ruin your name. You won't be able to get a book signing in front of Walgreens. Are we clear?"

"Crystal."

"Good. Tyler, please keep me updated on all developments."

"You got it, Bells," Tyler said, trying his best not to look amused by the situation.

"What was that all about?" I kissed her on the side of the head and slid my arm around her waist as we walked away.

"Hey, Masen," Alec called.

"Ignore him."

I couldn't resist answering him, "Yes?" I turned to find him with a smug look on his face; or at least it would be a smug look if he didn't have a red handprint on his cheek.

"How does it feel to know I closed the deal with someone you couldn't?"

Now I was genuinely confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Tanya?" he gloated.

"You slept with Tanya?"

"Who hasn't," Bella muttered.

"Oh, but you have everything you need., I mean, you're taking my sloppy seconds., You aren't mad that you didn't give me yours?"

"Not at all."

He looked confused.

"I'd never sleep with my sister," I clarified.

"She's Emmett's sloppy seconds, you asshole," Bella laughed.

I couldn't help but laugh as I watched him process the information. I'd initially taken him for a nice guy. At one point I thought he might be a better match for Bella than I was, but I was beyond thrilled and happy to admit I was absolutely wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot happened in this chapter! What did you think? Like it? Love it? Hate it? Should Alec get herpes now? Tell me! I have a teaser of the next chapter as ready and waiting as Tanya.
> 
> I have discovered some AMAZING stories in the past week or so.
> 
> Confessions by morethanmyself is brilliant. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE go leave her some love. The amount of reviews this story has does not reflect the quality of the story. It's a severly under appreciated fic that needs more love shown.
> 
> I Wept Not by ArcadianMaggie has boy love but it's a lovely story of struggle and trying to move on. Very angsty but oh-so wonderful.
> 
> Surviving Bella by Savage7289 same author who wrote Hide and Drink.


	27. It's Just Us

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Just Us
> 
> So here we are, the final chapter of It's Just Lunch.
> 
> I have so many people to thank, I don't even know where to start, so I'm going to sit on my grand speech until the epilogue.
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone who has stuck with me for the past year.
> 
> Thank you Irritable_Grizzzly for beta'ing this with me multiple times. Pixiekat7 for pre-reading, I appreciate it all.

"Well that was interesting," Bella sighed, then closed her eyes and leaned back into the leather seats of the town car.

"No doubt," I agreed.

After we'd left the lot with script changes in-hand, Bella received a call from Tyler saying that Alec had left the set for the day with a glazed look in his eyes. Apparently he hadn't taken the news so well that he'd screwed my sister and not someone I was interested in, and had gone into shock.

"I never thought he'd be that kind of guy, you know?" Bella shook her head like she was trying to wipe the image from her mind.

"Bella, I really hate to bring this up now, but we have to talk about something." I tried to keep my voice gentle, but my tone firm.

"Is it something that can keep until we're back in the room because I'm mentally exhausted right now?"

"We need to talk about Tanya."

"Fine." She rolled her eyes and looked at me pointedly. "Talk."

"You need to stop being so negative about her. Everyone makes mistakes-"

"Most people learn from their mistakes. Tanya doesn't. She just moves to a different zip code."

"You can't judge people until you really know them," I argued.

"You can't be serious. How can I not judge her? She secretly fucked your best friend for over a year, slept with my fiancée, and now this? You can't be serious, Edward."

"Fine, judge her. Whatever. But keep the negativity to yourself. She's my sister, mistakes and all. If you can't say something nice, then don't say it at all. Knock off the sarcastic comments and we'll be fine."

"Are you ordering me to do something?" She leveled her gaze at me and I could feel myself shrinking back. It didn't take a genius to know that she was remembering how Renee had constantly ordered her around.

"You're almost thirty years old, Bella. I shouldn't have to order you to do anything. I'm merely asking that you have some respect for my feelings."

"You're right. I don't know Tanya because I don't care to know her based on everyone else's experiences, but I'll be nice because she's your sister, you love her, and it's important to you, but don't expect much more than that."

"All I ask is that you try."

"Whatever." She stared straight ahead but judging by her relaxed body language I had gotten through to her.

"Thank you." I leaned over and lightly kissed her cheek. She turned her head and lightly kissed the corner of my mouth, which turned into a real kiss as she pressed herself against me and slid her hand to my crotch.

"Now?" I murmured against her lips.

"Why not?"

I motioned to the driver.

"Hey, Seth?" Bella leaned toward the front seat.

"Yes Ms. Swan?"

"What would happen if you ever told anyone what you heard or saw in this car while employed by Swan Media Group?" She leaned forward a bit more, swaying her hips directly over my lap.

"Would you like what it says in my contract, or what you said to me directly?" he said, amusement in his voice.

"Either. Please inform Mr. Masen, for me." She sat in my lap, grinding her ass against me.

"Uh." He cleared his throat and continued, "I believe I'm paraphrasing, but in essence Ms. Swan said she would gladly have my ass grilled and served to me on a silver platter."

"No need to scare the poor kid, Bella."

"Seth, are you scared of me?"

"Nah, we're cool, B."

"Would you do me a favor?"

"Yes, Ms. Swan?"

"Put up the partition now."

"Have a good afternoon Mr. Masen. It appears we're going to be hitting early rush-hour traffic," Seth chuckled as the tinted window slowly divided the car.

"See, no worries." Bella turned to face me, straddling my lap.

"How do you two know each other?" I slowly ran my hands up and down her sides, letting my thumbs graze her nipples.

"Family friend."

"Okay." The way she was outlining my ear with her tongue while pushing her cleavage into my face didn't really give me the ability to say much else.

"What do you want, Edward?" she whispered.

"Fuck, I want you." I pulled her ass to me and pushed into her.

"Like this?" She wiggled her hips. "Or would you rather I use my mouth, or maybe my hands?" She scraped her nails down my chest and began unbuckling my belt. I quickly pushed up her skirt. Because of the position we were in, I wasn't able to slide it all the way up, but I could see that she was sans panties. Also because of the position we were in, she was already in the perfect position.

"Have you been like this all day?" I licked my thumb and slowly rubbed her clit.

"Yes," she hissed. The thought of her walking around with just a thin piece of fabric between us aroused me more than I'd expected, and I knew she'd done it just to tease me. I was already hard, but the thought of being so close to what was mine, felt amazing.

"Fucking hell, I love you." I pulled her down for a long deep kiss and slid my fingers inside her, eliciting a deep moan from her chest. I didn't grow impossibly harder, but the pain grew more intense.

"Love you too." She moved her body, changing the angle of my fingers. "Fuck me," she moaned and squeezed her eyes shut as she moved above me, faster and faster and then mid-kiss she said, "Stop."

"Stop?" I repeated.

"Not stop. Cock. I want to come on you." She fumbled with my belt and I pushed my pants to my knees. Not even waiting for my boxers, she pulled me from between the opening and pushed herself down.

The heat, the intensity, and the sweat made everything more intimate.

"Shit." I had to bite my cheek from making a noise that would give Seth the soundtrack to what was happening in the backseat.

Instead of bouncing up and down, Bella slid back and forth, rolling her hips. At the pace she was keeping, I wasn't going to last very long. She threw her head back and started moving a little faster, and a little harder. I gripped her hips and kept rhythm. I reached down, but she swatted my hand away.

Instead she began touching herself and I'll be damned if it wasn't the sexiest thing I'd ever seen.

"Edward, touch me," she whispered, then grabbed my hand and began massaging her chest. Both of our hands touching her, our fingers interlocked, working together, it dawned on me that this is something I wanted. Us, together. Permanently.

"So good," she chanted over and over and squeezed her eyes shut and buried her face in my neck. Her body tensed and she let out a soft shudder. After what felt like hours, she resumed her movements, but at a slower pace. The slow buildup began again. The tension and pressure continued to climb and without warning, I came, not holding back my sounds of pleasure.

I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close, both of us groaning as I pulled out.

"Ugh, we're gross now," she giggled, then squeezed her legs together and slid off my lap.

"Speak for yourself. I'm easy enough." I tucked myself back into my boxers.

"Don't look at me."

"What?" I turned to look at her.

"I said not to look at me." She lightly kicked me with her foot. "We're almost to the hotel and I have to clean up."

"You came prepared."

"Yes." I glanced over and saw that she had indeed come prepared as she tossed a baby wipe into a plastic bag and slid on a pair of flimsy underwear.

I couldn't help but laugh about the time she'd put into all of this.

"Don't laugh. I did all this for you," she smirked.

"Right, and you didn't enjoy it," I laughed.

"Hey guys, we're a block away from the hotel, but they're telling me to go around the back."

"Oh, shit," I said, rubbing my hands over my face. I'd forgotten about the fans I left behind at the hotel.

"What's wrong?"

"We might need to get another hotel."

A Month Later

Bella Swan

"Do we really have to leave?" Alice sighed.

"You don't have to, but I do." I stared at the horizon. I didn't want to tell her how much I'd missed Edward and wanted to get back to him. It was bad enough that I'd been sneaking off at least three times a day to call and hear his voice.

"Bella, you have more money than most, so why do you choose to work? You could do this all day, every day, without a care in the world." She took a long drink from her coconut until it was empty, and then signaled the waiter for another.

"Don't make me give you the 'Charlie speech' again, Ali."

"I know, I know. I just...thank you. For everything you've done for me in the past couple of months. Trying to juggle a personal life and a professional one hasn't been easy and you knew just what I needed. Like a best friend would."

"I promised you Maui, and we're in Maui. I wish we weren't going home so soon, but-"

"You miss Edward."

I nodded.

"If I had Edward Masen in my bed every night, I'd miss him too." I could tell she was rolling her eyes behind her sunglasses and simply shook my head and laughed.

"It's more than that. We're more than that." I started to explain further when she stopped me.

"I know, Bells. You guys are it for each other and I'm glad that you're happy. I can't think of anyone who deserves it more than you."

I felt my eyes forming tears. "You deserve to have someone too, babe. I know things with Jasper didn't exactly pan out—" I was cut off by a snort from Alice.

"Pan out? Is that how you'd put it? Yeah, I'd say it definitely didn't pan out."

"How are you handling everything?. Are you really okay, or do you just seem that way because you've been drunk off Seabreezes and fruity drinks in coconuts for the past four days?"

"Both. I think? I don't know." She shrugged. "I'm trying to move past it. I will, eventually. I just need to get over how much I threw myself into a relationship that moved so fast. I didn't even take the time to get to really know him. When we first met, we hit it off and that seemed like it was enough. I blew you off constantly, and I can't think of a time when you needed me and I was there for you. I was always with Jasper.

"You apologized so many times, Ali, you really don't need to do it again."

"It's not just that." She sighed and continued, "I guess I need to forgive myself for turning into that girl. The kind who changes her personality for a guy and loses herself in him. Then after the whole Tanya thing I let my insecurity get the best of me to the point I changed my physical appearance. I feel like I let myself down and I don't like how much of myself I put into being with him. Looking back on it now, I feel like I gave more than he did."

"I don't know about that. The whole reason he was meeting with Tanya was because he wanted to pick out an engagement ring," I pointed out.

"Yeah, that's true," she agreed, "but if he really cared, he would've asked you; you know me better than anyone and it would only make sense. I mean, Emmett asked me to go with him when he picked out yours."

"Do you think you can move past this?"

"I'd like to think so, but I need to figure out what it is I want out of a relationship with anyone, let alone if Jasper is worth the effort a second time around."

A silence fell between us as we stared at the last sunset of our vacation. After Alice finished her last coconut, we went inside to clean off all the sand and prepare to head home in the morning.

Even though I'd loved Hawaii and had a great time with Alice, I missed Edward. I was anxious to be back in his arms, listening to his soft snoring or his sleep-talking and how he'd keep saying I was his.

I sent him a quick text with our flight itinerary even though I knew he wouldn't be picking me up this time. He'd been told he needed to go back to Chicago and do some re-shoots due to Alec's ridiculous scene changes. I wasn't upset he wouldn't be there. We'd damn-near started a riot the last time he attempted to pick me up.

Then I remembered how we'd been mobbed that day we'd tried to sneak around the back of the hotel. Somehow the paparazzi had grown brains and knew that we wouldn't be arriving at the main entrance. Instead, they got pictures of us completely disheveled with our legit "sex-hair." There was no need to wait for the MTV Awards to reveal our relationship. Instead, Alice whipped up a quick statement that said we were happy together and asked that fans and the public respect our privacy.

Like that worked.

It made everything worse.

When I had gone with Emmett to help him pick out Rosalie's engagement ring (because apparently she scares the shit out of most females and doesn't have any close friends), there were pictures and announcements for weeks that we were back together. Thankfully neither of us heard from our respective families, or at least if Emmett heard from Maria, he never told me.

The picture of Rose stopping by our table at Chateau Marmont to say hi was deemed the "Cat-fight of the Century." The picture looked like we were clawing, but in reality I was hugging her in congratulations of her engagement. The picture of Emmett and Edward staring each other down was the brief moment before Emmett gave the punch line to a story.

Each night we slept at one or the other's house. Half of my closet was at his place and vice-versa. Since Jasper had moved out and bought his own place, he made Jasper's room into a man-cave; complete with an HD movie screen and pinball machines.

I missed him. My body missed his touch and kisses, and my heart longed for its companion. I had never felt this way about Emmett, and as much as I loved him, there was never a chance that he could measure up to Edward.

I had just finished showering when I heard my phone chirp and saw the text message. I immediately called Sam. He was speaking in sobs and I could barely understand him.

"Bella! You need to turn on ESPN, now!" Just then, Alice came bursting into my room, waving her arms frantically and talking gibberish.

"What the hell is going on? Sam is blubbering and you're yelling."

"Bella, turn on the TV. Right now."

I watched in horror as they replayed a clip of Jake getting hurt. He'd run to catch a pop-fly foul ball and dove to make the save. Unfortunately he wasn't watching where he was going and he slammed head-first into the mats.

"He's going to be okay, but we need you to get here soon. Please," Sam begged.

"I'll be right there. We're catching the next flight now." I nodded to Alice to make sure she'd heard me, but she was already on her way out the door.

"I've got it covered," she yelled.

My next call was to Billy who filled me in on his condition. He'd severely dislocated his shoulder and hurt his neck. The doctors were running tests as we spoke. I called Edward to let him know I was leaving on an earlier flight and he said that he was watching the game live when it happened. A sleepless twelve-hour flight later, and we were in a car on our way to Cedars Sinai.

I was met by a very weary Sam and Billy in the waiting room. Thankfully, there hadn't been any injuries to his spinal cord, but he was complaining of a severe headache and the doctors were going to keep him under observation for a concussion. What broke my heart even more was that Billy had told the staff Jake and Sam were partners, but they refused to recognize their relationship.

I stopped in Jake's room and gave him a quick lecture about how he needed to go back to being an over-enthusiastic all-star. He grunted and whispered that he loved me. I gave him a kiss on the forehead and left to go home and shower and change.

Alice and I spent the next few days with Sam and Billy at the hospital, hoping that no news was good news. On the third day the doctors released Jake and told him he was out for the rest of the season, despite his shoulder being on the mend. Sam had been pressuring Jake to retire ever since he'd broken his leg earlier in the season, and Jake agreed. He would announce it after the season was over..

I called Edward to let him know of Jake's prognosis, but it rang once and went to voicemail. I knew he was scheduled to come home earlier in the day, but I still hadn't heard from him. Figuring he was exhausted and sleeping, I sent him a text that I was on my way back home, and he sent one back almost immediately that he wanted to see me and was at his house.

I kissed everyone goodbye and made my way to Edward.

After an eternity of battling LA traffic I pulled into his driveway, surprised to see the house completely dark. I double-checked my phone to make sure he'd said he was going to be at his house.

I knocked on the door before using my key to let myself in.

"Edward?" I called.

There was a soft glow coming from the family room and the floor suddenly felt slippery. I looked down and saw it was speckled with something. It was too dark to really comprehend what it was, but I suddenly got a sick feeling in my stomach.

The soft glow was coming from candles and if my gut was right, there were rose petals everywhere.

No.

NO.

NO!

I couldn't do this again. Not yet. I wasn't ready. I loved Edward more than anything and I knew he was the one, but a year ago I was engaged to someone else. This was too soon, too fast. I slowly made my way back to the front door, making sure I didn't slip on the flowers.

"Bella? Where are you?"

I sighed and turned around, cringing and waiting for the inevitable.

"I'm here." I retraced my steps and my heart stopped when I had a full view of the first floor of his house. Candles were everywhere. The room had several bouquets of gorgeous flowers and there sat Edward on the couch with two glasses of wine, looking fantastic in a black suit.

"Hey." He stood up and pulled me into a tight hug. "I've missed you." He gave me two slow kisses and pulled back, smiling widely.

"I missed you too." I squeezed my eyes shut to try and stop the tears. "What's going on?" I gave him a small smile.

"You look exhausted. Come sit down. I have something I'd like to talk to you about."

I decided to keep my assumptions to myself, and let him speak, hoping that maybe I was wrong.

"God, you look so gorgeous." He tried to hand me a glass of wine but his hands were shaking so badly, I stopped him.

"You're making me nervous. Would you please tell me what's going on?"

"You're nervous?" he laughed. "That's great."

Then my mouth seemed to have a mind of its own. "Please tell me because I'm thinking things I shouldn't be thinking," I rambled.

"Bella-"

I kept on. "I love you, of course, and one day I'd like to think of us as more permanent, not that I don't already, but-"

"Bella!" Edward put his hand over my mouth.

"I don't want to marry you," he chuckled.

"Well why not?"

He laughed. "For all those reasons you just mentioned. I love you, baby, so much. I put a lot of planning into this." He stopped when I raised my eyebrow. "Okay, the candles and flowers aren't exactly original, but the idea behind all of this has been on my mind for a while. So can I please start over?" He looked so vulnerable, so nervous. My heart broke. I had done exactly what I said I wouldn't and ruined the moment.

"I'm so sorry. Please let's start over."

"Thank you. Just give me a minute, please." I nodded and impatiently waited.

"Okay, here goes," he said under his breath, then flashed me a smile and took both my hands. "Bella, I love you. When we're apart, I feel like a piece of me is gone. It doesn't matter if we're traveling or ten minutes away from each other. I hate the idea that you have to leave me in the morning. I hate that even though we try to talk daily, we get so wrapped up in our careers we wind up not seeing each other for long periods of time, which makes us both irritable and cranky.

"I despise that I feel the need to sometimes make an appointment with that god-awful assistant of yours just to make sure I can see you. That's insane. I want us to be able to see each other every day. I want to be able to feel you next to me when you sleep and when you're talking about peanut butter sandwiches in your Elvis voice. I love watching you sleep. I know. I'm a creepy and selfish bastard.

"When it is the right time to propose I will come up with a far more creative way than flower petals and cheap candles and I'd like to think that you'd say 'yes' you do want to put up with me for a lifetime. Right now, though, I'd settle for what we have, just in a more confined space." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a jewelry box, then slid off the couch and got on one knee.

He opened the box which held a shiny necklace with two keys and asked, "Isabella Marie Swan, will you move in with me?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like the ending? Hate it? Let me know.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed and recommended this story. It wouldn't be what it is without you.


	28. It's Just the Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The transfer is almost complete! I'll add the outtakes in a bit. I'm going to eat some pizza and cake. I have a few other stories on Fanfiction.net that I want to bring over.   
> \---
> 
> Wow, so here we are. The final installment of It's Just Lunch. I've been working on this story for a year and I have to say that so much has changed since I started this story and I can't tell you how many times I wanted to just stop and quit. It was because the all the amazing reviews and PM's from the fandom that kept me going.
> 
> No words can describe the affection, admiration, adoration and all the words starting with the letter A for my beta, Irritable_Grizzzly. She held my hand through some very hard times and has helped me evolve into a much better writer.
> 
> As always, all things Twilight are intellectual (and I use that term loosely) property of Steph Meyer.
> 
> PLEASE READ THE A/N AT THE BOTTOM

Edward Masen

Eighteen Months Later

"You ready for this?" I looked in the mirror to make sure my tie was straight.

"Not even close, are you?" Jake asked, taking a shot of tequila. It was Emmett's brilliant idea to have us drinking while getting ready for the wedding.

"I'm fine." I shrugged.

"Yes you are," he leered and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Really, man?" I rolled my eyes in response.

"What?" He held up his hands defensively. "Just because I'm getting married doesn't mean I can't appreciate a piece of art; in fact I'd bet Sam would agree with me."

"That's just wrong," I laughed. "I'm gonna see how the girls are doing. You gonna be okay?" I eyed the bottle of Patron warily. Ever since we'd started getting ready for the ceremony, Jake had been more nervous than he was letting on. His hands were shaking and he was fidgeting with anything he could get his hands on. I had promised Sam jokingly that I'd get him to the church on time. Granted, the ceremony wasn't being held in one because no church would actually allow it, but we all understood.

"Sure, sure." He waved me off. I shot a quick text to Jasper to stay with Jake until I could get back.

I wandered down the hall and ignored Jasper and Alice in a hushed argument, as I ducked into the bathroom where Rose was hunched over the toilet, her hair being held back by Bella.

"How's it going?"

My question was met with a glare from Rosalie and a look from Bella that screamed you're an idiot.

"Okay, let me rephrase. Rose, is there anything I can get you?"

"Ginger ale and water," Bella answered for her, because at that moment Rose leaned over and threw up again.

"I'm going to kill Emmett and his super sperm," Rose moaned.

"What?" I laughed.

"Emmett," Bella sighed, "is insisting that the reason Rose's morning sickness is so bad is because his sperm has created a baby so awesome it's making her extra sick. Don't look at me like that. Those are his words, not mine."

"That's-" I began.

"Stupid. I know," Rose sniffled.

"Can I steal you for a minute?" I felt a little bad leaving Rose alone when she clearly needed help, but I just wanted a minute alone with my girl.

We stepped in the hallway just in time to see Alice stomp away from Jasper, who was clenching his fists in frustration. Then he turned and walked in the other direction. This scene wasn't uncommon since they'd tried to restart their relationship several months back.

"What's up?" Bella asked.

"I just wanted a minute alone with you before the real chaos starts." I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her soundly. The feeling of her relaxing into me was something I would never get tired of.

"Do you think this could be us one day?" I pulled back a little, trying to gauge her reaction.

"Which part? Being pregnant and throwing up like Rose, or the constant fighting like Alice and Jasper?"

"I was thinking of the wedding part, actually." My voice sharper than I intended, but I was hurt that the wedding wasn't the first thing that came to her mind.

"We just moved in together, let's not rush things." She lightly kissed me and headed down to the bar, presumably to get Rose her fluids.

It had been a year and a half since I'd asked her to move in with me, but we'd bought a house together and just finished the renovations a few months back. If this was her train of thought, if I did ever propose, how long would it take her to say yes?

Two Years and Ten Months Later (roughly)

"EJ, slow down!"

He crashed into me, trying to pin me to the floor. It was our new game since he'd learned how to tackle. He was only three, but damn, the kid was strong.

"Dude, go hug your mom and say sorry before she gets really mad, okay?" I whispered.

"Okay." He flashed me a big smile and took off down the hall.

"How many times have I told you not to run in other people's houses," Rosalie scolded him.

"Uncle Edward isn't other people," EJ insisted.

"Oh come on, Rose, lighten up." I stood up and walked over to greet her and Emmett, still standing in the entryway.

"Yeah mommy, lighten up," EJ echoed.

"Edward, it's a pleasure as always." She leaned in and kissed my cheek. "Just wait till you have one. Karma's a bitch," she whispered, then brushed passed me, calling for Bella.

Emmett followed, laughing and shaking his head. We shook hands and moved into the kitchen where Bella and Rose were whispering. They broke apart as soon as they spotted us.

"Damn, look at all this food." Emmett motioned. "I know Bella didn't make all this." The spread was simple, but impressive. It was the typical BBQ food, plus fresh fruits and vegetables with dips and sauces. Bella had made cookies and cupcakes for the kids.

After living together for a while, we learned to do things at home due to the paparazzi camped outside our door. Bella had slowly learned to cook by hiring a private chef to give us lessons. Otherwise we would have starved.

When I first met Bella, if someone had told me that Emmett McCarty would become one of my closest friends, I would have said they were insane. If someone had told me that I'd be a groomsman in his wedding, I would have laughed in their face.

"What's going on in here?" I wrapped my arms around Bella and pulled her in for a quick kiss.

"Rose is trying to figure out for what special occasion we're having our get-together. Hey, EJ, Noah's upstairs, he's been waiting for you." She handed him a couple of cookies and he took off for the game room.

"Emmett McCarty Junior, don't you dare run-" Rose began, threatening her son, but he'd taken off before she could complete her threat. I laughed, but quickly stopped when I saw the death glare she shot me.

"Karma, Edward. Karma."

"Yeah yeah." I waved my hand.

"Seriously, when are you guys going to get on it?" Emmett asked, popping a carrot in his mouth.

"Get on what?" I asked.

"We want to be traditional and not be like all the other Hollywood couples who pop out five kids before they're married." Bella pulled a cookie sheet out of the oven and set it on the cooling rack. I kicked myself for not warning Emmett to keep his mouth shut about kids. It was a topic we'd discussed to the point of exhaustion. I wanted them; she didn't.

"Oh please," Rose scoffed. "You're stalling. Jake and Sam were in the process of adopting Noah before their wedding, so you really have no excuse. If you wanted to be traditional, you would have been married before you guys moved in together."

"She's got a point," I agreed.

"I'm not talking about this right now," Bella's tone was firm, signaling the end of the discussion. "Emmett, look, I made cookies."

"You made them or you bought them and stuck them on a cookie sheet?" Rose laughed.

"Stuckthemonacookiesheet," Bella mumbled. "What?" She laughed, "I didn't have time. Jake and Sam showed up early and I was playing with Aiden and forgot to make them."

"Wait, they brought the new baby?" Rose stood up and headed for the stairs.

"Yeah, Noah's watching a movie and Aiden is sleeping in our room." Bella motioned toward the baby monitor by the kitchen sink.

"Where are they? I didn't see their car in the driveway."

"They left with Jasper to get ice.".

"Are Alice and William coming?" Emmett grinned. Besides Bella's cooking, the other running joke was Emmett's man-crush on William.

"Yeah, they're going to be late." We both knew the reason why.

When Bella and Alice returned from Maui, Alice took some time to do some soul-searching. She and Jasper finally sat down and talked. They both realized they never took the time to get to know each other properly and decided to take things slow. They were together for over a year before calling it quits again.

This time it was by mutual agreement (that was their story, anyway). They agreed that physically they were very compatible, but weren't meant to be in a relationship. Jasper was fine with them being apart at first, but when Alice came home from a business trip completely smitten with someone else, he was hurt.

When Alice first started bringing Will around, he was quiet, but quickly fit in. Bella called him a charmer and if I wasn't so sure of her love for me, I'd have been jealous. Even Jake and Sam were falling over themselves. Emmett liked him because when they met, he immediately made reference to a comment Emmett had said in Sports Illustrated back when he was fresh out of college and playing pro. Ever since then, they were best friends. Bella called it a bro-mance.

I hated to admit it, since Jasper had been my best friend since childhood and an overall outstanding person, but he seemed to be Alice's second best. She and William just had more common ground. Jasper was a good guy, they just weren't a good match and he deserved to find someone who was.

When we did have group get-togethers, if William was around, Jasper kept his distance or would leave shortly after he arrived. The only reason he was around today was because we had specifically told him he needed to be at the house. Plus, William had taken Alice to Napa Valley. To propose. We weren't concerned they would be late for dinner, since they already knew and would still be around for the celebration, hopefully giving us even more of a reason to celebrate. .

"Whatever, I'm going to see the new baby and check on the kids." Rose stood and went to the playroom.

After she was out of earshot, Emmett leaned forward and stage-whispered, "So what's going on?"

"You'll find out when everyone is here." Bella patted his hand and grinned.

"You didn't knock her up, did you?"

"No, Emmett. I'm not pregnant."

"Who's not pregnant?" Jake yelled from the front door.

"Bella," Emmett and I said at the same time. It was the truth. In fact, we'd had many careless moments, and there was the brief period when we'd talked about starting a family.

Bella had been somewhat hesitant about raising a child, afraid that she'd end up like Renee. I pointed out over and over again, that she turned out just fine and would make a spectacular parent, because she recognized Renee's faults and knew not to repeat those mistakes.

The week before we were supposed to meet with her doctor to discuss family planning, Renee called, begging for money. Shortly after the scene in New York with Phil, Renee was single and homeless. She had moved from one wealthy man to another before being ostracized from high society. It was the reappearance of Renee that freaked Bella out and we cancelled the appointment. It set us back dramatically.

"She will be eventually," Sam chimed in, plopping a bag of ice in the cooler by the patio.

"You're just going to have to try harder. No reason for you to keep all that hot genetic code to yourself." Jake walked by, slapping my ass.

"Oh, now that's just gross, Jake," Bella laughed and threw a piece of cucumber at him.

"That sounded really gay," Sam laughed and followed up with, "even by my standards."

It was at that moment that Aiden woke up and a few seconds later Rose emerged with Jake and Sam's new baby. The state of California, as liberal as it was, was incredibly slow when it came to legal adoption by gay couples regardless of how famous or wealthy they were. Instead, for Noah they found someone through private adoption when he was already a year old, and Aiden was the result of a surrogate. I never really considered being a parent or adopting until Noah, and then EJ, came along. I didn't even know I liked kids until I held EJ and was completely fascinated.

"So, now we're all here, what's the big announcement?" Sam stole a cookie and stared at us. Jake took the baby from Rose and the kitchen fell quiet, waiting for the news.

"Should we tell them everything, or just the thing?" I winked at Bella.

"Might as well tell them everything," she sighed and grinned.

"Well," she said, "the first thing we'd like to tell you all is that I quit SMG. It's in good hands now and I fully trust the new board of directors. I'm taking some time off to just relax and then I'm branching out."

"Branching out to where?" Rose cautiously asked.

"I sold some of my shares at SMG and I'm now Carlisle Cullen's business partner." The kitchen erupted in noise, mostly Jake yelling that she was dishonoring Charlie's hard work and memory. She assured him that she was still the majority shareholder and would stay on as a silent partner, but she was discontinuing her physical duties and promoting Tyler, Alec's old assistant. Once Jake was calmed and he apologized, Bella answered a few more questions about her start date and how Carlisle felt about working with a woman.

"I've been looking for new representation. I'd sign with you any day, just don't make me deal with that asshole," Rose laughed.

"You said there was something else?" Sam prodded.

I cleared my throat. "I'm going to be taking a break from work for a year." I pulled Bella to my side and placed a kiss on her cheek.

"Jesus, Edward. You ever think you might need to talk to me about this in advance?" Jasper folded his arms and looked pissed.

"I know, I'm sorry and it's not set in stone. Normally I would have, but this time I thought it was more important discussing to discuss it with my fiancée first." Bella wrapped her left hand around my arm, failing to be subtle with showing the ring Alice helped me choose several months back.

"Bella, it's gorgeous!" Rose slammed Bella into the counter with a hug.

"I was wondering when you were going to do it. Took you long enough." Jake and Sam both shook my hand.

"Wait, what do you mean it took him long enough? You knew about this?"

"Well, I kinda-" I rubbed the back of my neck, trying to figure out how to phrase it, when Jake cut me off.

"He asked for my blessing a few months ago."

"You did?" Bella's eyes widened and in a flash she had her arms around me, kissing me hard. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," she whispered, her eyes starting to look a little watery. "I love you so much," I whispered back and then Rose dragged her into another room, I presumed to talk about dates and dresses and colors or whatever.

Emmett just stared at me for what felt like an eternity. "You make her happier than I ever did. Congrats, man." He shook my hand and asked me how Tanya was doing.

Tanya was always an interesting topic. After the Alec fiasco, she decided to take a break from everything and everyone. She'd been hurt to find out she'd been used so cruelly. Instead of lashing out, she went to England and started working with a few soccer players who were moving to the United States. She helped negotiate their contracts and get their documents in order. One particular player fell for her and vice-versa. After England lost their bid in the World Cup, he came back and proposed. They were still on their honeymoon, which has lasted for almost six months.

She was happy, and therefore I was happy for her. Bella was content because Tanya was a long-distance presence. The relationship between them was a very slow and evolving process. Tanya was always welcome in our home, and respected Bella's boundaries, and Bella was always pleasant, but that was the extent of it.

The relationship between Alice and Tanya was non-existent. Alice let Tanya finally have her say, and then Alice changed her number and told Tanya to never contact her again. To the best of my knowledge, she hasn't.

While Rose and Bella were off discussing all things floral, the rest of us stayed in the kitchen and finished preparing for dinner Jasper asked for one more place-setting at the same time I heard a car pull up and was surprised to see that it wasn't Alice, but instead a tall blonde woman climbing out of the car.

"That'd be my date." He set the dishes down and greeted his guest, then introduced us to Chelsea, a fellow talent manager who had a client that was working on a film with one of Jasper's newest talent finds.

"Nice," Emmett appraised and fist-bumped Jasper when none of the girls were looking. We were halfway through our meal when I heard another car pull up. I wasn't the only one who took notice as Bella shot me a look and announced Alice and William had arrived. Jasper stiffened and relaxed when Chelsea lightly touched his arm. I had to wonder how much of their history he had disclosed to her.

We were all distracted by the loud sounds of squealing and chattering. The noise moved closer to the kitchen and got louder as congratulations, hugs and introductions were spread around. At the news of Alice's engagement, Jasper smiled genuinely and shook William's hand. I saw Bella visibly relax.

After the sun had set and everyone had cleared out, Bella and I settled out on the deck with a couple of glasses of wine. She leaned back into my chest and sighed.

"You okay?" I kissed her hair and rubbed my thumb over her knuckles.

"Never better." She smiled.

"You sure about that?"

"Absolutely."

"What I wouldn't do to know what you're thinking right now." We locked fingers.

"I'm thinking how I've wasted so much time."

"How so?"

"I stalled moving in with you, and I kept finding excuses for us not to move forward. I don't want to wait anymore."

"We're getting married, so I don't know how much more waiting is involved," I chuckled.

"I don't want to wait to get married. I want to do it now." She set her wine glass on the ground, turned around, and straddled my lap.

"We can do it now." I grabbed her hips and lined her up exactly where I felt the pressure building.

"Not that. At least not right now. I meant I want to get married now."

"So, what, you want Vegas or Atlantic City?" I shifted against her, hoping she'd still consider it."

"I was thinking Alice could make a few calls, we fly into Vegas with all our friends, and do it next weekend." She thrust against me and smiled. "So what do you think?"

"I think you don't need to tease me with sex to agree to an elopement."

"It's only teasing if you don't plan to follow through."

"Please follow through."

"So next weekend, yes?"

"Next weekend, you'll be Mrs. Masen?"

"Absolutely."

"Now that we have that settled, what about the other 'doing it?' "

She got off the chair and pulled me up with her, walking me back inside.

"You just agreed to marry me in less than a week. The things I want to do to you are not meant to be done outside."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like it? Hate it? Love it?
> 
> Many people PM'd me or said in their reviews that Alice and Jasper had better end up together.
> 
> Here's the thing: I don't like being told what to do, especially when this is done on my own free time and I'm not getting paid for it. This is something I do for fun. I never had it where they would be together, it was never in my mind. If you visit the Twilight Lexicon and re-read the first book of the Saga, you'll find that Alice was changed by James but was in love with a vamp named William while she was still human. So the way I see it, Jasper was never Alice's mate. William was.
> 
> I do have one outtake to offer in exchange for a review. If you tell me how much you hated or liked or thought it was...eh, I'll send you the proposal between Ed and Bella.
> 
> It will take me a bit of time to get it to you since I am boarding a plan for four days to New Orleans and I don't think drunk emailing is ever a good thing.
> 
> Thank you all so much for those who have stuck with me, RoseArcadia for making my kickass blinkie, IdPattThat for just being a fantastic friend and Adverb who initially beta'd this bad boy.
> 
> So I hit complete with a lightness and content feeling that my story ended up just the way I wanted. God knows how long I've been excited to name my epilogue "It's Just the Epilogue."
> 
> -Anne

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I appreciate all comments and kudos.


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